Scientists have developed a new method to provide information about 3D-printed foods by printing a QR code on the food itself. It does not affect the taste or appearance of food and does not require the use of any labels.

The technology is known as “interiqr” (as in “inner QR”) and is being developed by a team at Osaka University, Japan. To prove the concept, researchers recently produced 3-D-printed cookies that are smooth and normal on the outside but contain an air-gap pattern inside.

Although these patterns are not visible under normal light, they do appear as window silhouettes when the cookie is viewed from the front and backlit. An ordinary smartphone can then read the codes and reveal the data stored in it.

Needless to say, in its current form, the technology will be limited to use in relatively thin, somewhat translucent 3D-printed food products. As a result, scientists hope this may eventually offer manufacturers, retailers and consumers an alternative to more wasteful and expensive approaches, such as paper labels routinely affixed to fruit or RFID tags affixed to packaging.

Also, if information such as ingredients and nutritional content could be communicated by the food itself, less packaging would be required to display the same information.

.

“Our 3D printing method is an excellent example of the digital transformation of food, which we hope will improve traceability and food safety,” said senior study author Kosuke Sato. “This technology can also be used to provide new food experiences through augmented reality, an exciting new area of ​​the food industry.” For more information on how the interiq system works, see in the video below.

Later this month, the team will present a paper on the research at the 35th Annual ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technologies.