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Scientists in Italy are
developing sweet snacks with lab-grown plant cells and fruit
residues, producing a material that a 3D printer can then
process into ‘pastries’ with high nutritional content.
Italy’s rich culinary traditions may have just gained UNESCO
heritage status, but the Nutri3D project by the country’s public
research agency ENEA shows scientists are out to push boundaries
in the quest for sustainable, nutrient-rich snacks.
A worker checks 3D printed snack bars made from plant cell cultures and by-products from the agri-food industry at the Elthub plant in Oricola, Italy, November 24, 2025.
| Photo Credit: REUTERS/Remo Casilli
Prototypes include snack bars and glossy “honey pearls”
designed to preserve flavour and nutritional value.
“In a world where arable land is shrinking and climate
change forces us to rethink food production, the goal is to keep
making what we are used to eating,” said Silvia Massa, head of
ENEA’s Agriculture 4.0 lab.
The aim “is not to grow the plant itself, but its cells,”
she added.
3D snack bars made from plant cell cultures and by-products from the agri-food industry are printed at the Elthub plant in Oricola, Italy, November 24, 2025.
| Photo Credit: REUTERS/Remo Casilli
Northern Europe has led early efforts, with Finnish labs
producing fruit compotes from cell cultures and researchers in
Zurich developing cocoa-like flavourings.
“We Italians add creativity, combining cellular food with
recovered by-products,” Massa said, referring to the fruit
residues from jam production for example.
The project is run with EltHub — an Italian private
technology R&D firm that is part of ELT Group — and Rigoni di
Asiago, a family-owned company specialising in organic food
products.
3D snack bars made from plant cell cultures and by-products from the agri-food industry are on display at the Elthub plant in Oricola, Italy, November 24, 2025.
| Photo Credit: REUTERS/Remo Casilli
At EltHub in the central region of Abruzzo, ENEA’s
plant-based “inks” are shaped using a 3D printer.
An ENEA survey found 59% of respondents willing to try such
foods.
The technology could also be useful in resource-scarce
settings, such as space or in conflict zones, said EltHub
director Ermanno Petricca, dubbing the snacks “fruit for
astronauts”.
ENEA is also testing microgreens and nano-tomatoes for space
cultivation.
On Earth, 3D food printing could enable tailored nutrition
for people with dietary restrictions. A plant-based steakhouse
in Rome, Impact Food, is already offering 3D-printed sliced meat
on its menu.
Published on December 16, 2025
