What do you think about ice cream made from plastic waste? And is it actually edible? When you hear about ice cream made from plastic waste, you might think of a model or a toy, right? This unique idea comes from a young Italian designer, carrying a message to awaken people about plastic waste and what we consume.
This vanilla ice cream is actually a work of installation art, titled “Guilty Flavors”, created by 27-year-old artist and designer Eleanora Ortolani from the University of the Arts London. Ortolani hopes her work will spark more discussions about future food and the plastic pollution crisis.
This vanilla ice cream is actually a work of installation art.
The process involves using plastic-eating bacteria developed by scientists in Edinburgh, operated like eco-friendly factories that digest various types of plastic and convert them into vanillin, the molecule that gives vanilla its flavor. This is also the second most expensive flavoring in the world after saffron.
Previously, Dr. Joanna Sadler, a biotechnologist at the University of Edinburgh, applied this process to create a soup, which was published in the Biochemical Journal in December 2021.
These studies and experiments are not conducted on humans but aim to raise awareness about environmental protection through recycling plastic waste, while also addressing the global food crisis.
