AI to help stock our pantries ... and feed astronauts

Perth Now

2 days ago

Stored meats, tomatoes and even onions can't last a few weeks let alone a seven-to-10 month journey to Mars but Australian scientists say artificial intelligence may help bridge the 225 million kilometre gap.
Space experiments are among a number of ways AI is being used to investigate the future of food: whether it can be preserved for longer, made to taste differently or grown without the threat of disease.
Ultimately, decisions about whether AI-modified foods are ready to feed to distant travellers or grace dining tables will be up to Australian regulators.
Meanwhile, government-funded research centre Plants for Space launched in October and is aiming to produce food suitable for consumption during long-term missions to the stars.
It has until 2030 - the next time humans are scheduled to rocket to the moon - to come up with the right stuff but is also investigating how to fulfil the dietary requirements of NASA's 2040 Mars launch.
It has until 2030 - the next time humans are scheduled to rocket to the moon - to come up with the right stuff but is also investigating how to fulfil the dietary requirements of NASA's 2040 Mars launch.
Because foods generally expire within days or weeks of purchase, the team is probing how to make items last long past their expiry date.
Genetically modifying and gene-editing foods could be a solution, according to Plants for Space investigator Associate Professor Sigfredo Fuentes.
Genetic modification occurs when foreign DNA is inserted into a product to enhance its nutrition profile, improve drought tolerance or reduce the need for pesticides.
It's similar to genome editing that rewrites DNA from the original food to enhance its colour, nutritional value or remove diseases.
Some foods can also be genetically modified using nutrient-rich water, rather than soil and seeds, which may be helpful when humans start planet-hopping.
"(Genetically modified organisms are) basically evolution on steroids - what happened for millions of years to produce a plant or a product that is edible for humans, we can do in a week," Prof Fuentes tells AAP.
"Every plant is way different and you need substitute soil, so they need to be modified."
Scientifically altering plants can take hours but the scientist, who also works at the University of Melbourne, sees AI as a way to simplify the process and reduce costs.
Prof Fuentes is working on 3D-printed artificially intelligent noses and tongues that use sensors to monitor the aroma and taste of objects.
Not only could they help deem food safe but accommodate an astronaut's taste, he says.
"We obtain all the biometrics, the emotional response, physiological response, heart rate, blood pressure (of people)", he says.
"AI can give a certainty using nutritional algorithms, as well, that it is not going to pose any problem."
3D printers can also create proteins, fats and carbohydrates and these space experiments could also solve food production challenges on Earth.
"We are looking into how to reduce food waste and try to increase the usability of 100 per cent of the resources we have," Prof Fuentes says.
"In really harsh environments like the desert, Antarctica, war-torn countries as well underground, using vertical farming, all those problems are ... being solved from our way of thinking on how to produce food in space."
AI is also being used to predict the outcome of crossbreeding plants, says British molecular biologist and SynBioBeta chief executive John Cumbers.
Large-language models can be used to find patterns and relationships within foods, he says, allowing researchers to develop proteins and enzymes that can reduce food pollutants.
"Let's say a farmer is trying to cross a tomato that has a large body of fruit with a tomato that has a rich-red colour," Mr Cumbers explains.
"They take the male plant and the female flowers ... and they're doing the cross pollination of the plants.
"Instead of guessing what the tomato is going to produce, at a molecular level you can now look at the sequence of DNA of the tomato.
"You can make a new tomato that might have a red colour through genetic engineering, rather than through a random process of selection which is what traditional farming does."
The CSIRO is also investigating ways to expand AI's role in the food production industry but but is strictly bound by safety and policy outcomes.
The removal of cells and proteins is a complex task, as it is hard to identify and isolate the safe characteristics of plants.
Bananas, cotton, canola, Indian mustard and safflower are the only genetically modified foods allowed in Australia, while in the US, potatoes, corn, apples and sugar beets can be modified.
"As more datasets become available and tools mature, we expect broader uptake across the sector," a CSIRO spokesperson tells AAP.
"Farmers, breeders and researchers use AI to model climate impacts, optimise fertiliser use, predict crop yields, accelerate traditional crop breeding and develop new food products based on nutritional or functional properties."
Elsewhere, Australia's food production sector is variously using AI to identify wine berries affected by smoke and eradicate weeds from native crops.
At Delungra in northern NSW, farmer Martin Murray expects AI will be increasingly adopted as more advanced solutions arise.
"Genome sequencing is a bit like when you go to buy a car," he says.
"You're not involved in the design and testing of the HiLux, you just go to Toyota.
"At the end of the day, it's just another tool that plant breeders are using to help them breed better varieties that help us grow more grain and make us more profitable."
Although genome edited or genetically modified food may become a future reality for farmers and scientists, one question persists: will people eat it?
Mr Cumbers says research proves there are health benefits but it will be up to governments to regulate the safety of products.
"There's a lot of other things that can cause negative harm to your health from food, like eating too much sugar, drinking alcohol, eating food high in sodium," he says.
"I don't really think there's any evidence there's any negative effects from genetically modified food .. as it has been around for a number of decades now."