Exploring the future of food tech at CES 2022, Michael Wolf, CEO at The Spoon, moderated “The Kitchen 2030: How Food & Cooking Will Change In The Future” panel on Thursday afternoon. The panelists included Robin Liss, CEO and co-founder at Suvie; Khalid Aboujassoum, founder and CEO at Else Labs; Dr. Dochul Choi, senior vice president at Samsung Electronics, Inc., and Kai Schaeffner, executive at Vorwerk, LLC.
With the explosion of interest in home cooking during the pandemic, food tech appliances and methods have experienced rapid growth, and the future looks bright for consumers to update their kitchens with appliances that utilize autonomous cooking tech to help them make better-tasting and healthier meals in less time with less waste.
The greatest obstacle to making advances more rapidly in food tech today is consumer adoption, the panelists agreed. Cooking is seen as a chore for the majority of people, and building smart, efficient appliances is only a part of the puzzle. “It’s all about educating consumers,” said Liss.
Predicting the future of food tech in the next 10 years, the panelists had a positive outlook and said we can look forward to connected, autonomous cooking devices that may not be robotic arms in the kitchen, but will free up time and living space by coordinating cooking methods and times to deliver meals to your tastes. Food portions delivered from the source and devices that know how to cook and prepare them, along with reduced waste, was also envisioned by the panelists.
Schaeffner predicted a fusion between smart kitchen and appliances will provide healthier lives and tastier food to eat thanks to the data gathered to meet our individual needs. “I see cooking and cleaning converting from being a chore into a hobby,” mused Choi.
