By Dawn Smith-Pfeifer
I remember when I was a kid reading Childcraft encyclopedias and dreaming about having a flying car when I grew up. At least, that's what the book predicted. I'm still waiting.
More recently, I was cleaning out my office drawers when I found a 1979 book from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It's a 142-page tome called "What's to Eat? And Other Questions Kids Ask about Food." It covers everything from how food gets from the farm to your table to what people grow and eat around the world. The most interesting part of it, however, was the chapter on how food and eating will look in the year 2029.
Since that date is a scant five years away, I thought it would be fun to highlight some of the predictions.
The intro pretty much nailed it: "Will the kinds of food you eat change very much in the future? Probably not. But one thing is for sure: Improvements in the methods of farming will certainly continue to take place. And those improvements will help to feed many more people around the world."
After that, it gets a little more space-agey. Instead of calling it the kitchen, they call it the Nutrition Module. A screen on the counter is called a Dietary Planning Computer.
This device keeps track of all the food that enters the home from the Nutrition Supply Center (formerly known as a supermarket). "They pass the labels of the food by the home computer scanner. The computer records all of the food in its memory bank. The computer then keeps track of all the meals that are served. And it subtracts the food used from the Food Inventory. That way, the family always knows what food it needs to buy."
While regular meals are still eaten, the writers for the book predicted we would have "food bars" that have the nutrition for a whole meal, with flavors like pizza, ham and eggs, or hamburgers. "Food bars are quick, cheap and nutritious, and people eat them when they just don't have time for a regular meal."
However, regular meals in 2029 will not involve cans, jars, or bottles. "Food is now put in see-through packages. These packages 'hug' the contents."
We won't have refrigerators in 2029 either. "That's because food is now treated in a special microwave process that seals in freshness. Meat can keep for over 2 years that way. So can all other food -- even milk."
If there's no refrigerator, how do you chill a beverage? Simple. A Quick Chilling Unit (why does everything have such long names?) chills your milk or juice in seconds!
I suspect I will still call the place I prepare food "the kitchen" in five years. And if my old refrigerator doesn't kick the bucket, it will also probably be there in five years. Nevertheless, this was a fun read. I always think it's a blast reading predictions to see the hits and misses. And, ahem, I'm still waiting for my flying car!
Smith-Pfeifer is the editor for On Your Table.