Researchers try to turn plastic into food for deep space missions

Illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios

Someday, astronauts may be able to eat a steak made from plastic — or discarded potato peels — while floating far beyond Earth's atmosphere.

Why it matters: As software continues to invade our kitchens, 3D-printed food systems are being explored by scientists and startups trying to figure out what astronauts would eat on deep space missions.

Driving the news: Ohio-based startup Beehex first revealed their plans for a "container" bioreactor that makes 3D-printed meals derived from plastic waste at the CES 2023 tech conference in January.

Details: Converting plastic waste into something edible is the brainchild of a Michigan Tech lab, where researchers are using microbes that feed on plastic.

How it works: Beehex's 3D food processing machinery uses a specially designed extruder — which is the piece of a 3D printer that essentially melts and pushes out a filament to create layered parts.

Reality check: The project is in the very early stages of development — so it's up in the air whether a dish originally made from the "cells produced when the bacteria feed off the plastic" would actually pass a federal food safety check.

The intrigue: Thinking even further ahead, the Beehex team is also working to provide astronauts the ability to one day turn excess waste produced during space farming into meals.

Yes, but: NASA does not have a plan to integrate any food processing machinery as of now, according to Contractor.

The big picture: In partnership with the Canadian Space Agency, NASA is currently in the second round of the Deep Space Food Challenge.

What they're saying: A NASA senior project manager for space crop production, Fritsche tells Axios that several submissions in the running involve 3D-printing technologies — which is in no way a "near-term solution" in feeding astronauts exploring deep space.

The bottom line: "The more infrastructure that's required to develop the food products, the more space, the more in the future it's going to take," says Fritsche.