Food

2023 marks the 50-year anniversary of diplomatic relations between Australia and Vietnam, one of the fastest growing economies in Southeast Asia. This anniversary comes as the two-way agriculture, fisheries and forestry trade between the countries has grown from strength to strength, surpassing $6 billion for the first time in 2022 (ABS 2023).

Biotechnology is changing the lens through which we understand biology, and in doing so is transforming our approach to health and nutrition. Here we explore four companies and innovative applications of this rapid developing field.

New Artificial Intelligence (AI) driven technology is optimising the supply chain for fresh and perishable products to deliver benefits to Australian growers and wholesalers. A new digital platform, developed by South Australian startup Optomni promises to reduce waste by up to 25 percent, maximising revenue and reducing the impact on the environment.

Using technology to solve consumer concerns is nothing new in the 21st century. But two brothers from Geraldton in Western Australia have taken it to a whole new level, utilising blockchain expertise to track premium Australian food from the farm gate to its final destination in China – and facilitating sustainable, and global consumer interactions.

Australian diners will soon have the option to tuck into a piece of meat grown from animal cells in a laboratory rather than a paddock. Synthetic biology, or SynBio, is also helping to engineer ingredients for plant-based proteins, design crops for fuel production, and the development of insecticides with the help of bespoke microbes.

Our global food system has a long history of evolution – responding to the changing needs of the global population. But "Are we evolving fast enough?"