How much authenticity do you need from your breakfast cereal? Well, if you answered that you wanted it to be laser-etched with the manufacturer's logo, it's time to start eating corn flakes in Britain.
The Guardian looked at a press release from Kellogg's in Britain that shows a digitally altered picture of individual corn flakes labeled with the Kellogg's logo. The laser-etching would apparently be used to differentiate various Kellogg's products from knockoffs. But the Guardian isn't sold that the cereal manufacturer is ready to go to such lengths or that the consumer would really care.
The concept of laser-etching food has been around for a few years. Etching sushi and tortillas is just one of those ideas that probably seems good in a lab after a few Red Bulls and the need for some levity.
Fruit labeling is expected to get the green light from the Food and Drug Administration this year. Laser-etching would
replace the traditional stickers with
laser "tattoos" for produce identification:
The system works by using a carbon dioxide laser beam to etch information into the first few outer cells of the fruit peel.The "tattoo" can't be peeled off, washed off or changed, preserving provenance.And water loss and the danger of pathogens are believed to be minimal. Natural Light Technology Ltd., one of the manufacturers of labeling systems, contends that laser
etching can help improve the ability to track produce and eliminate
confusion over organic or other designations.
But laser etching has been slow to find approval and, according to the Consumerist, there are no current plans for laser-etched cereal from Kellogg's in the United States.
[Image via Flickr: trevor coultart]
Comments (0)