Technology has come a long way. It has percolated all spectrums of our life – banking, business, medicine, food, traffic, communication, commuting and an endless list of so many things we do in our daily lives. The impact of these technological changes is quite evident. Routine tasks are done a lot faster. Time is saved on repetitive tasks. In all, the overall efficiency and effectiveness of human life is vastly improved due to technological interventions.
Apart from banking, one technological intervention that is oft seen in an everyday life is that of food apps. This particular intervention is a brilliant example of disruptive technology. Nobody would have thought of ordering food online just a decade ago. More so, ordering all and any kind of cuisine from anywhere in the world was a distant possibility.
Ordering food online today is a super simple process. All it takes is a smart phone, a reliable internet connection, a digital wallet and a place to deliver. Who ever dreamt that eating exotic foreign dishes or satisfying Indian food would become just a series of steps in a flow chart like arrangement?! Thanks to food tech and the multiple food apps, this is an everyday reality now.
For young India and its host of millenials, food apps are a huge comfort. Initially, used by restaurants or eateries to provide food for its customers, the apps have now expanded to accommodate home chefs and home prepared meals. Customized meals, organic meals, millet based food, just desserts, only cupcakes or brownies, milkshakes etc can be the single most offering one has. They are still ensured of customers and a wide reach thanks to the order food online as a culture.
Someone once said that technology has arrived when it can download real food. Given the nature of technological leaps that are happening and the advancements in Artificial intelligence and machine learning, this day may not be far. The day might come soon, when we might be able to download food through virtual reality. At this point of time it sounds like a fiction based sci fi movie scene. But even robots were considered to be a piece of imaginative sci fi fiction for a very long time. Now, they are reality. So no harm, keeping our hopes high for downloadable food.
The best use of food tech according to me apart from gifting food apps to the world is using the same tech for charity. There are many dedicated apps for ordering food online for the poor, destitute and the economically challenged the world over. In my view, this is technology with a human face used for a purpose that is basic yet very touching. A hungry tummy is a hungry tummy no matter if itsBill Gates or Bin Laden or a beggar on the street. If food tech has been able to satiate the hunger pangs of even a couple of destitute, then it’s a cause worthy of encouragement.
Technological strides in the same fashion, if they continue will be able to support initiatives driven towards reducing hunger in the world. Disturbing facts like child deaths due to lack of food may well become news of the past. A change that we all should welcome and look forward to.
