A flat pasta such as a lasagna can be made to take shape while cooking, with extraordinary savings on packaging and transportation costs.
Sustainable innovation-developed by a group of Chinese and American researchers we contacted-has yet to find the industrial application it deserves, however.
1) Sustainability of pasta and its packaging.
Pasta is a sustainable food par excellence, all the more so when produced from organic wheat. (1) It can even achieve a negative carbon footprint, as demonstrated in productions from organic ancient grains. (2)
The environmental sustainability of pasta has therefore so far focused on primary agricultural production, including in ‘glyphosate-free‘ and ‘zero residue‘ pesticide variants. (3) As well as, most recently, in choosing paper packaging without clear plastic windows.
1.1) Areas for improvement
Areas for improvement are seen in the optimization of industrial processes, recovery of heat and process water, use of renewable energy sources, automation and green transition of logistics and transportation.
However, a significant cost item is packaging, logistics and transportation of millions of cubic meters of air occupied by the packaging volumes of some pasta formats in particular (e.g., tagliatelle, rigatoni, fusilli).
1.2) Circular Economy
The circular economy finds its first and best expression, at the top of the Lansink scale, in material reduction. The Reduce verb has inspired the design of IKEA’s furniture, with a view to minimizing the footprint of their packaging.
The food industry has so far favored appearance. And this is also why bulk food sales and packaging reuse have not yet achieved the success they deserve instead (4.5). But transporting air with skyrocketing ocean freight costs is truly unsustainable.
2) Innovation
A research team from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), Syracuse University and Zhejiang University has developed a flat dough that takes on the desired shape during cooking. (6) The pasta recipe, it should be noted, does not require any changes.
The dough of durum wheat semolina, water and salt-or other grains and legumes (7)-is simply drawn into a flat sheet on which tiny grooves are imprinted, causing it to morph into tubes, spirals, twists and waves. And so in the required formats.
2.1) Morphing
Lining Yao-director of the Morphing Matter Lab in the Human-Computer Interaction Institute at CMU School of Computer Science-explains how this technology, applied to food design, offers interesting results precisely in terms of sustainability. With significant impact also in reducing the carbon footprint of the production and distribution chain.
Grooves can be used to control the shape of a wide range of materials, from silicon sheets to plastics, rubber, textiles, biomedical devices and food. The research was funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, the CMU Manufacturing Futures Initiative and the National Natural Science Foundation (China).
3) Perspectives
Some food industries, including Italian ones, have expressed interest in the research under consideration. Interest has focused on the savings in space and money that can be achieved through ‘morphing pasta,’ but also on the experience of the consumer who witnesses the shape of the pasta change during cooking.
Lining’s lab-as Chris Kissell, associate director of Corporate Partnerships at CMU, explains-focuses on fundamental research. Its ideal partner is one that funds research with a view to its industrial scalability and application to pasta destined for the mass market. Perhaps even in Italy, where even though the birth of flat pasta is celebrated. (8)
Dario Dongo
Notes
(1) Dario Dongo, Paolo Caruso. Pasta sustainability, ancient and modern grains compared. Scientific study. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 5.11.19,
(2) Paolo Caruso, Dario Dongo.
Ancient grains and the fight against climate change, a scientific study.
. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 24.4.19,
(3) Dario Dongo.
Glyphosate-free, zero residues, values and rules.
. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 10.11.18,
(4) Marta Strinati.
Bulk foods in the supermarket, the ecological transition in France.
. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 17.5.21,
(5) Marta Strinati.
Encouraging the reuse of food containers, the PLEF Manifesto.
. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 23.6.22,
(6) Aaron Aupperlee. CMU Lab Leads Development of Pasta That Morphs. Carnegie Mellon University news. 5/13/21, https://www.cmu.edu/news/stories/archives/2021/may/morphing-pasta.html
(7) Dario Dongo. Durum wheat pasta, other cereals, legumes. THE ABC’S. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 13.11.19,
(8) Massimo Lanari. Lasagna, the eternal challenge between Bologna and Napoli. Italian Cuisine. 12.10.15, https://www.lacucinaitaliana.it/news/in-primo-piano/lasagne-storia/
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
