University of Guelph people and innovations were named in three separate Globe and Mail articles looking at the future of food in 2020 and beyond.

In one article entitled “Six food trends ready to take off in 2020,” Dana McCauley, director of New Venture Creation at U of G’s Research Innovation Office, was cited on emerging food trends. The article said the “plant-based meat” trend could continue to evolve as new products enter the market. McCauley pointed to Air Protein, a meat substitute that uses airborne micro-organisms to create protein with the help of carbon dioxide.

In  “How we’ll eat in the decade ahead,” U of G food laureate Anita Stewart said she believes restaurants will continue to support local farms and producers as many restaurateurs grow more concerned about the environmental impact of our food choices.

The article noted that this year will see the creation of the U of G Anita Stewart Alumni Food Laboratory, a multi-functional lab and teaching studio for hospitality and nutrition students to learn innovative practices in food preparation, production and food science.

Globe and Mail food columnist Lucy Waverman discussed growing interest in alternative flour in a column entitled “What food trends will we see in 2020?”. She pointed to new U of G research on banana flour, made with green bananas. U of G researchers led by engineering professor Mario Martinez are developing methods for turning the flour, which would ordinarily be disposed of as food waste, into value-added supplements that may be used in baking.