Edible Speculations: Designing Everyday Oracles for Food Futures

Digital food technologies carry promise for better food futures but they are often problematic in their impact on food cultures and practices. While proponents suggest that food-tech products such as smart kitchenware or diet personalisation services can support efficient food practices, critics highlight various risks. This paper presents our findings from Edible Speculations, a long-term design research project exploring the contested space of food-tech innovation through a series of speculative design (SD) events situated in everyday public contexts. We illustrate the opportunities and limits of eventful SD in supporting critical engagements with food-tech issues through an Edible Speculations case study called the Parlour of Food Futures. Our discussion of selected Parlour events can inform readers interested in food-tech themes as well as those keen on experimenting with eventful approaches to SD research.