A stainless steel cow that produces vegan milk and a vertical farm designed for space feature in this video of the Spacefarming exhibition created by Dezeen for Dutch Design Week.

The exhibition, which was created by Next Nature and Embassy of Food, explored farms of the future and how designers can respond to the growing need for more food.

Taking place at the Evoluon museum in Eindhoven, the exhibition explored the role designers can play in creating the food industry of the future, along with how to create new agricultural resources and viable food chains on Earth and in space.

 

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The show featured work from designers and experts hailing from multidisciplinary backgrounds, including scientists and farmers, who reflected on the existing food industry and proposed new social and sustainable ways of designing for the future.

Belgian food-tech company Those Vegan Cowboys introduced a lifesize stainless steel cow that produces vegan milk and cheese six times more efficiently than livestock.

The exhibit explained how cow's stomachs contain microbes which, through the process of fermentation, turn grass into dairy without the need for a real animal.

The Lighthouse by Dutch design duo 4F Studio is a bioreactor that makes use of the light pollution caused by streetlights to grow algae and, in turn, grow plant food rich in fats and protein.

The designers proposed that the "residual light" of city streetlights would mimic photosynthesis and enable cyanobacteria to thrive and continue their production throughout the night.

According to the designers, the bioreactor would be capable of producing the equivalent of two lettuces-worth of nutrition in one night alone, which could accelerate the rate at which food is produced in the future.

IKEA's design innovation lab Space10 created a vertical farm designed for use in space, which grew microgreens and young vegetable plants intended to be eaten when they first began to produce leaves.

The greens would be easy and quick to grow and would contain a high concentration of nutrients, vitamins and antioxidants.

Designer Laila Snevele's Sensetopia concept imagined a future in which we are able to design our senses according to specific health concerns, such as being able to sense UV light or air pollution.

Focussed on food and health, the project explored the future of sensory wearable technology that would enable users to detect unhealthy ingredients and sugar levels in the food we consume.

This video is the second in a series of reels Dezeen is producing during the design week, highlighting the best projects from the design fair.

Dutch Design Week 2023 takes place from 21 to 29 October in Eindhoven. See Dezeen Events Guide for information about the many other exhibitions, installations and talks taking place throughout the week.

Top image courtesy of Dutch Design Week. 

Partnership content

This video was produced by Dezeen for Dutch Design Foundation as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.