[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6XASxni0I0[/youtube]

Watch the grant-winning prototype print some synthesized chocolate.

NASA awards a $125,000 grant to Anjan Contractor, head of Systems & Materials Research Corporation, to develop a 3D food printer. Under the six-month grant, the first device Contractor plans to build is based on epRap’s open-source hardware and will be designed to print a pizza comprised of three layers of nutritional powders mixed with water and oil.

As the final frontier gets further and further away, NASA’s need for a nutritious, long-lasting food supply suitable for space travel grows. Since the powders used in Contractor’s design — potentially sourced from insects, grass and algae — have a shelf life of about 30 years, his 3D food printer would be well-suited to the task.

Via Engadget