What could the healthy, sustainable and equally importantly, delicious fast food of the future look like?
It’s a question the team over at Space10, IKEA’s “external future living lab” in Copenhagen have been toying with in their test kitchen. They’ve reimagined a handful of classic fast food dishes using everything from insects to algae to construct a hypothetical future fast food menu that would be good for both us and the planet.
But is has to taste good too: “To change people’s minds about food, to inspire them to try new ingredients, we can’t just appeal to the intellect—we have to titillate their taste buds,” they say.
One dish is the Bug Burger, pictured above. Each patty contains 100g of beetroot, 50g of parsnip, 50g of potatoes, and 50g of mealworms and is served on a white-flour bun, topped with relish, beetroot and blackcurrant ketchup, chive spread, and a hydroponic salad mix.
It's important to note that there are no plans for any of the dishes, more of which you can see below, to feature on the menu of your local IKEA anytime soon, but it’s a tantalising glimpse of what we might be binging on in the future.
Space 10 also have some pretty neat urban gardening solutions too.
All photos: Kasper Kristoffersen
Read more about the future of food
'Dogless Hotdog' – glazed baby carrots, beet and berry ketchup, mustard and turmeric cream, roasted onions, cucumber salad, herb salad mix, spirulina bun.
'Neatballs' – made either with mealworms or root vegetables.
'Local Salad' – hydrophonic microgreens, sprouts and herbs: red veined sorrel, broccoli and tarragon; pea sprouts, pink stem radish and thyme; and borage, red frill mustard and lemon balm, with basil, tarragon or lemon balm dressing and day old bread.