More Than Shape 3D Prints Chocolate to Offer New Taste Experiences

Lately, more and more projects combining 3D printing and food are emerging. Earlier this year, we told you about the startup Revo Foods, which 3D prints salmon fillets from pea proteins, citrus fibers, vegetable oils and seaweed extracts, of course there is also the famed French startup La Pâtisserie Numérique. And this type of initiative is becoming more widespread. Thibault Baes, a Brussels-based designer, is at the head of the More Than Shape project. Accompanied by a Michelin-starred chef and a chocolatier, he 3D prints chocolate with the aim of creating new taste experiences through additive manufacturing. We sat down with him to learn more.

3DN: Can you introduce yourself and More Than Shape?

My name is Thibault Baes and I am a designer in Brussels. More Than Shape is the result of my graduation project at ENSAV LaCambre. It is formal research aiming to create new taste experiences in the mouth thanks to 3D printed chocolate. My research is divided into 4 parts: Compartmentalize, Fold, Support, Break.

“Break” (photo credits: Thibault Baes)

3DN: What made you decide to go into food 3D printing, and more specifically chocolate?

It was about combining my two passions: 3D printing and cooking. I started to get interested in 3D printing around the same time I started my design studies and since then I bought several printers, worked in a fablab, etc… When it came time to choose a final project, I wanted it to be related to 3D printing. The theme of 3D printing in the gastronomy sector was obvious. Not very easily at first, but I was very proud of it because I thought it represented me perfectly. I first started experimenting with new “materials” but as a designer, I had to focus on form and use, so I chose to work only with chocolate because this material was already well documented in food printing.