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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1988

Space shuttle food system summary, 1981-1986

All food in the Space Shuttle food system was precooked and processed so it required no refrigeration and was either ready-to-eat or could be prepared for consumption by simply adding water and/or heating. A gun-type water dispenser and a portable, suitcase-type heater were used to support this food system during the first four missions. On STS-5, new rehydratable packages were introduced along with a needle-injection water dispenser that measured the water as it was dispensed into the packages. A modular galley was developed to facilitate the meal preparation process aboard the Space Shuttle. The galley initially flew on STS-9. A personal hygiene station, a hot or cold water dispenser, a convection oven, and meal assembly areas were included in the galley.

Stadler, Connie R.↗
NASA NTRS2022

Pre- and Post-Production Processes Increasingly Dominate Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Agri-Food Systems

We present results from the FAOSTAT emissions shares database, covering emissions from agri-food systems and their shares to total anthropogenic emissions for 196 countries and 40 territories for the period 1990–2019. We find that in 2019, global agri-food system emissions were 16.5 (95 %; CI range: 11–22) billion metric tonnes (GtCO2 eq. yr(exp -1)), corresponding to 31%(range: 19 %–43 %) of total anthropogenic emissions. Of the agri-food system total, global emissions within the farm gate – from crop and livestock production processes including on-farm energy use – were 7.2 GtCO2 eq. yr(exp -1); emissions from land use change, due to deforestation and peatland degradation, were 3.5 GtCO2 eq. yr(exp -1); and emissions from pre- and post-production processes – manufacturing of fertilizers, food processing, packaging, transport, retail, household consumption and food waste disposal – were 5.8 GtCO2 eq. yr(exp -1). Over the study period 1990–2019, agri-food system emissions increased in total by 17 %, largely driven by a doubling of emissions from pre- and post-production processes. Conversely, the FAOSTAT data show that since 1990 land use emissions decreased by 25 %, while emissions within the farm gate increased 9 %. In 2019, in terms of individual greenhouse gases (GHGs), pre- and postproduction processes emitted the most CO2 (3.9 GtCO2 yr(exp -1)), preceding land use change (3.3 GtCO2 yr(exp -1)) and farm gate (1.2 GtCO2 yr(exp -1)) emissions. Conversely, farm gate activities were by far the major emitter of methane (140 MtCH4 yr(exp -1)) and of nitrous oxide (7.8 MtN2Oyr(exp -1)). Pre- and post-production processes were also significant emitters of methane (49 MtCH4 yr(exp -1)), mostly generated from the decay of solid food waste in landfills and open dumps. One key trend over the 30-year period since 1990 highlighted by our analysis is the increasingly important role of food-related emissions generated outside of agricultural land, in pre- and post-production processes along the agri-food system, at global, regional and national scales. In fact, our data show that by 2019, pre- and post-production processes had overtaken farm gate processes to become the largest GHG component of agri-food system emissions in Annex I parties (2.2 GtCO2 eq. yr(exp -1)). They also more than doubled in non-Annex I parties (to 3.5 GtCO2 eq. yr(exp -1)), becoming larger than emissions from land use change. By 2019 food supply chains had become the largest agri-food system component in China (1100 MtCO2 eq. yr(exp -1)), the USA (700 MtCO2 eq. yr(exp -1)) and the EU-27 (600 MtCO2 eq. yr(exp -1)). This has important repercussions for food-relevant national mitigation strategies, considering that until recently these have focused mainly on reductions of non-CO2 gases within the farm gate and on CO2 mitigation from land use change. The information used in this work is available as open data with DOI https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5615082 (Tubiello et al., 2021d). It is also available to users via the FAOSTAT database (https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/EM; FAO, 2021a), with annual updates.

FAOSTAT agri-food systems emissions database↗
NASA NTRS1974

Skylab food system

The Skylab food program was a major effort involving a complex spectrum of activities necessary for the preparation of a crew feeding system. Approximately 17,000 individual food packages and support items, weighing more than 1225 kg, were launched into space as a single unit on board the orbital workshop. This unit provided the three (three-man) Skylab crews with nourishing foods and beverages for a total of 156 days, as well as with eating utensils and accessory items. Additionally, provisions for 5 days (15 man-days) were provided in each of the three command and service modules in a manner similar to that of the Apollo flights. The Skylab food system not only provided the crew with a palatable balanced diet in a familiar and acceptable manner but also supported the formidable mineral balance medical experiment series (M070).

Bush, W. H.↗
NASA NTRS2007

The Challenges of Developing a Food System for a Mars Mission

A viewgraph describing the food system that NASA is developing for Manned Mars Missions is shown. The topics include: 1) The President's Vision for U.S. Space Exploration -January 14, 2004; 2) Introducing Orion (and Ares); 3) Mercury (1961-1963); 4) Gemini (1965-1966); 5) Apollo (1968-1972); 6) Skylab (1973-1974); 7) Shuttle/Mir (1995-1998); 8) Shuttle (1981-present) International Space Station (2000-present); 9) NASA Stored Food System; 10) Advanced Food Technology; 11) Orion Missions; 12) Orion Challenges; 13) Food Packaging; 14) Mars Mission Assumptions; 15) Planetary Food System Selected Crops; 16) Food Processing Equipment Constraints; 17) Crew Involvement Constraints; 18) Advanced Food Technology Integration; 19) Research Highlights Internal; and 20) Research Highlights External.

Perchonok, Michele↗
NASA NTRS2021

Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Food Systems: Building the Evidence Base

New estimates of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the food system were developed at the country level, for the period 1990–2018, integrating data from crop and livestock production, on-farm energy use, land use and land use change, domestic food transport and food waste disposal. With these new country-level components in place, and by adding global and regional estimates of energy use in food supply chains, we estimate that total GHG emissions from the food system were about 16 CO2eq yr−1 in 2018, or one-third of the global anthropogenic total. Three quarters of these emissions, 13 Gt CO2eq yr−1, were generated either within the farm gate or in pre- and post-production activities, such as manufacturing, transport, processing, and waste disposal. The remainder was generated through land use change at the conversion boundaries of natural ecosystems to agricultural land. Results further indicate that pre- and post-production emissions were proportionally more important in developed than in developing countries, and that during 1990–2018, land use change emissions decreased while pre- and post-production emissions increased. We also report results on a per capita basis, showing world total food systems per capita emissions decreasing during 1990–2018 from 2.9 to 2.2 t CO2eq cap−1, with per capita emissions in developed countries about twice those in developing countries in 2018. Our findings also highlight that conventional IPCC categories, used by countries to report emissions in the National GHG inventory, systematically underestimate the contribution of the food system to total anthropogenic emissions. We provide a comparative mapping of food system categories and activities in order to better quantify food-related emissions in national reporting and identify mitigation opportunities across the entire food system.

greenhouse gas emissions↗
NASA NTRS2016

Risk of Performance Decrement and Crew Illness Due to an Inadequate Food System

NASA is preparing for long duration manned missions beyond low-Earth orbit that will be challenged in several ways, including long-term exposure to the space environment, impacts to crew physiological and psychological health, limited resources, and no resupply. The food system is one of the most significant daily factors that can be altered to improve human health, and performance during space exploration. Therefore, the paramount importance of determining the methods, technologies, and requirements to provide a safe, nutritious, and acceptable food system that promotes crew health and performance cannot be underestimated. The processed and prepackaged food system is the main source of nutrition to the crew, therefore significant losses in nutrition, either through degradation of nutrients during processing and storage or inadequate food intake due to low acceptability, variety, or usability, may significantly compromise the crew's health and performance. Shelf life studies indicate that key nutrients and quality factors in many space foods degrade to concerning levels within three years, suggesting that food system will not meet the nutrition and acceptability requirements of a long duration mission beyond low-Earth orbit. Likewise, mass and volume evaluations indicate that the current food system is a significant resource burden. Alternative provisioning strategies, such as inclusion of bioregenerative foods, are challenged with resource requirements, and food safety and scarcity concerns. Ensuring provisioning of an adequate food system relies not only upon determining technologies, and requirements for nutrition, quality, and safety, but upon establishing a food system that will support nutritional adequacy, even with individual crew preference and self-selection. In short, the space food system is challenged to maintain safety, nutrition, and acceptability for all phases of an exploration mission within resource constraints. This document presents the evidence for the Risk of Performance Decrement and Crew Illness Due to an Inadequate Food System and the gaps in relation to exploration, as identified by the NASA Human Research Program (HRP). The research reviewed here indicates strategies to establish methods, technologies, and requirements that increase food stability, support adequate nutrition, quality, and variety, enable supplementation with grow-pick-and-eat salad crops, ensure safety, and reduce resource use. Obtaining the evidence to establish an adequate food system is essential, as the resources allocated to the food system may be defined based on the data relating nutritional stability and food quality requirements to crew performance and health.

Douglas, Grace L.↗
NASA NTRS2000

Shuttle and ISS Food Systems Management

Russia and the U.S. provide the current International Space Station (ISS) food system. Each country contributes half of the food supply in their respective flight food packaging. All of the packaged flight food is stowed in Russian provided containers, which interface with the Service Module galley. Each country accepts the other's flight worthiness inspections and qualifications. Some of the food for the first ISS crew was launched to ISS inside the Service Module in July of 2000, and STS-106 in September 2000 delivered more food to the ISS. All subsequent food deliveries will be made by Progress, the Russian re-supply vehicle. The U.S. will ship their portion of food to Moscow for loading onto the Progress. Delivery schedules vary, but the goal is to maintain at least a 45-day supply onboard ISS at all times. The shelf life for ISS food must be at least one year, in order to accommodate the long delivery cycle and onboard storage. Preservation techniques utilized in the US food system include dehydration, thermo stabilization, intermediate moisture, and irradiation. Additional fresh fruits and vegetables will be sent with each Progress and Shuttle flights as permitted by volume allotments. There is limited refrigeration available on the Service Module to store fresh fruits and vegetables. Astronauts and cosmonauts eat half U.S. and half Russian food. Menu planning begins 1 year before a planned launch. The flight crews taste food in the U.S. and in Russia and rate the acceptability. A preliminary menu is planned, based on these ratings and the nutritional requirements. The preliminary menu is then evaluated by the crews while training in Russia. Inputs from this evaluation are used to finalize the menu and flight packaging is initiated. Flight food is delivered 6 weeks before launch. The current challenge for the food system is meeting the nutritional requirements, especially no more than 10 mg iron, and 3500 mg sodium. Experience from Shuttle[Mir also indicated insufficient caloric intake for many crewmembers. Additional thermostabilized and irradiated foods have been developed for ISS to improve the ease of preparation and overall acceptability. Dehydrated foods offer limited advantage, since water must be delivered to ISS. An effort is underway to introduce other International Partner's food into the ISS food system. At first this will be one or two selected foods with the potential for more as the program matures. An increase in the variety of available foods would improve the overall acceptability. Additional galley capability will be required when the crew size increases on ISS. Anticipated improvements include freezers, refrigerators and microwave ovens. All of the ISS food development efforts are devoted to improving the food acceptability and subsequent consumption and mission success

Kloeris, Vickie↗
NASA NTRS2008

The Challenges of Developing a Food System for a Mars Mission

This viewgraph presents a review of the development of food systems for the use during a Mars Mission. It review some of the food delivery systems developed for all of the NASA space programs from Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo, to the Space Shuttle, International Space Station. The goals and objectives of the program are to: provide an adequate food system and develop a safe food system, that is nutritious and acceptable to astronauts, and to provide a food system that efficiently balances vehicle resources.

Perchonok, Michele↗
NASA NTRS2014

Delivery of Probiotics in the Space Food System

The addition of probiotic bacteria to the space food system is expected to confer immunostimulatory benefits on crewmembers during spaceflight, counteracting the immune dysregulation that has been documented in spaceflight [1]. Specifically, the probiotic Lactobacillus acidophilus has been shown to promote health benefits including antagonism towards and inhibition of virulence related gene expression in pathogens, mucosal stimulation of immune cells, and a reduction in the occurrence and duration of cold and flu-like symptoms [2-5]. The optimum delivery system for probiotics has not been determined for spaceflight, where the food system is shelf stable and the lack of refrigeration prevents the use of traditional dairy delivery methods. This work proposes to determine whether L. acidophilus is more viable, and therefore more likely to confer immune benefit, when delivered in a capsule form or when delivered in nonfat dry milk powder with a resuscitation opportunity upon rehydration, following 0, 4, and 8 months of storage at -80degC, 4degC, and 22degC, and both prior to and after challenge with simulated gastric and intestinal juices. We hypothesize that the low moisture neutral dairy matrix provided by the nonfat dry milk, and the rehydration step prior to consumption, will extend probiotic viability and stress tolerance compared to a capsule during potential storage conditions in spaceflight and in simulated digestion conditions.

Castro, S. L.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Delivery of Probiotics in the Space Food System

The addition of probiotic bacteria to the space food system is expected to confer immunostimulatory benefits on crewmembers during spaceflight, counteracting the immune dysregulation that has been documented in spaceflight. Specifically, the probiotic Lactobacillus acidophilus has been shown to promote health benefits including antagonism towards and inhibition of virulence related gene expression in pathogens, mucosal stimulation of immune cells, and a reduction in the occurrence and duration of cold and flu‐like symptoms. The optimum delivery system for probiotics has not been determined for spaceflight, where the food system is shelf stable and the lack of refrigeration prevents the use of traditional dairy delivery methods. This work proposes to determine whether L. acidophilus is more viable, and therefore more likely to confer immune benefit, when delivered in a capsule form or when delivered in nonfat dry milk powder with a resuscitation opportunity upon rehydration, following 0, 4, and 8 months of storage at ‐80degC, 4degC, and 22degC, and both prior to and after challenge with simulated gastric and intestinal juices. We hypothesize that the low moisture neutral dairy matrix provided by the nonfat dry milk, and the rehydration step prior to consumption, will extend probiotic viability and stress tolerance compared to a capsule during potential storage conditions in spaceflight and in simulated digestion conditions.

Castro, S. L.↗
NASA NTRS2002

Bioregenerative food system cost based on optimized menus for advanced life support

Optimized menus for a bioregenerative life support system have been developed based on measures of crop productivity, food item acceptability, menu diversity, and nutritional requirements of crew. Crop-specific biomass requirements were calculated from menu recipe demands while accounting for food processing and preparation losses. Under the assumption of staggered planting, the optimized menu demanded a total crop production area of 453 m2 for six crew. Cost of the bioregenerative food system is estimated at 439 kg per menu cycle or 7.3 kg ESM crew-1 day-1, including agricultural waste processing costs. On average, about 60% (263.6 kg ESM) of the food system cost is tied up in equipment, 26% (114.2 kg ESM) in labor, and 14% (61.5 kg ESM) in power and cooling. This number is high compared to the STS and ISS (nonregenerative) systems but reductions in ESM may be achieved through intensive crop productivity improvements, reductions in equipment masses associated with crop production, and planning of production, processing, and preparation to minimize the requirement for crew labor.

Non-NASA Center↗
DOE OSTI2025

Governance and resilience as entry points for transforming food systems in the countdown to 2030

Due to complex interactions, changes in any one area of food systems are likely to impact—and possibly depend on—changes in other areas. Here we present the first annual monitoring update of the indicator framework proposed by the Food Systems Countdown Initiative, with new qualitative analysis elucidating interactions across indicators. Since 2000, we find that 20 of 42 indicators with time series have been trending in a desirable direction, indicating modest positive change. Qualitative expert elicitation assessed governance and resilience indicators to be most connected to other indicators across themes, highlighting entry points for action—particularly governance action. Literature review and country case studies add context to the assessed interactions across diets, environment, livelihoods, governance and resilience indicators, helping different actors understand and navigate food systems towards desirable change.

Schneider, Kate R. [Johns Hopkins Univ., Washingto↗
NASA NTRS1974

Skylab food system laboratory support

A summary of support activities performed to ensure the quality and reliability of the Skylab food system design is reported. The qualification test program was conducted to verify crew compartment compatibility, and to certify compliance of the food system with nutrition, preparation, and container requirements. Preflight storage requirements and handling procedures were also determined. Information on Skylab food items was compiled including matters pertaining to serving size, preparation information, and mineral, calorie, and protein content. Accessory hardware and the engraving of food utensils were also considered, and a stowage and orientation list was constructed which takes into account menu use sequences, menu items, and hardware stowage restrictions. A food inventory system was established and food thermal storage tests were conducted. Problems and comments pertaining to specific food items carried onboard the Skylab Workshop were compiled.

Sanford, D.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Skylab food system

A review of the Skylab food system requirements, package designs, and launch configurations was presented. In-flight anomalies were discussed, and between-mission changes in design were described. A discussion of support for Skylab 3 and Skylab 4 mission extensions and of new items launched on these missions is included.

Turner, T. R.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Probiotics in the Space Food System: Delivery, Microgravity Effects, and the Potential Benefit to Crew Health

As mission distance and duration increase, the need grows for non‐invasive disease prevention and immunomodulation, especially given the limited medical response capability expected for these missions and the immune dysregulation documented in crew. Additionally, changes in diet, lifestyle, antibiotic usage, and the environmental stresses during spaceflight may alter crewmembers' intestinal microbiome. The addition of probiotic bacteria to the space food system is expected to confer immunostimulatory benefits on crewmembers, with the potential to counteract the immune dysregulation that has been documented in spaceflight. Based on previous studies that demonstrated unique microbiological responses to the low shear environment of spaceflight, probiotic organisms hold the potential to induce enhanced beneficial responses through mechanisms, such as beneficial interactions with human immune cells and repression of colonization of pathogens on the mucosa. The work presented here will begin to address two research gaps related to providing probiotics in spaceflight: 1) delivery, and 2) the effect of the low shear microgravity environment on probiotic attributes. The probiotic Lactobacillus acidophilus was selected for investigation due to its wide commercial use and documented benefits that include inhibition of virulence related gene expression in pathogens and mucosal stimulation of immune cells. The delivery system for probiotics has not been determined for spaceflight, where the food system is shelf stable and the lack of refrigeration prevents the use of traditional dairy delivery methods. In order to demonstrate the potential of the space food system to deliver viable probiotic bacteria to crewmembers, the probiotic L. acidophilus was packaged in high barrier flight packaging in nonfat dry milk (NFDM) or retained in commercial capsule form. Viable cells were enumerated over 8 months of storage at 22, 4, and ‐80ºC. The survival of L. acidophilus rehydrated in NFDM, in a PBS control, and directly from the capsule was also evaluated following stress challenge with simulated gastric and intestinal juices to determine the method that would deliver the most viable cells to the intestine, where they would be expected to confer beneficial effects. L. acidophilus was found to be stable to gastric and intestinal juice challenge when delivered in rehydrated NFDM, even after two hours of exposure. In comparison, L. acidophilus was reduced by 1‐5 logs when exposed to gastric and intestinal juice directly and when rehydrated in a PBS control. Shelf life data indicated that L. acidophilus would require refrigerated or frozen storage to remain viable at adequate levels over the multi‐year storage periods required for spaceflight. This study suggests that the protective effect provided by the dairy matrix, and not merely rehydration prior to consumption, extends probiotic viability and stress tolerance during storage in spaceflight and in simulated digestion conditions more adequately than a capsule. In addition to effective delivery, it is essential to understand the microgravity effects on the stress tolerances and genetic expression of probiotic bacteria to enable optimization of growth, survival, strain selection, and conferred benefits in spaceflight. In our current study, ground‐based characterization of the growth, stress response, and transcriptomic response of L. acidophilus will be accomplished using the low shear modeled microgravity (LSMMG) culture environment in the rotating wall vessel (RWV). We hypothesize that L. acidophilus will maintain or improve its growth and stress response following culture in the LSMMG environment, and that transcriptomic analysis will define the associated molecular mechanism(s), resulting in the ability to optimize strain selection.

Castro, S. L.↗
NASA NTRS1970

Space station/base food system study. Volume 1: Systems design handbook

A description is given of the approach used in a study to identify and define engineering data for a spectrum of possible items and equipment comprising potential food systems. In addition, the material presented includes: (1) the study results containing the candidate concepts considered and technical data, performance characteristics, and sketches for each of the concepts by functional area; (2) human factors considerations for crew tasks; (3) shuttle supply interface requirements; (4) special food system study areas; and (5) recommendations and conclusions based on the study results.

Source record↗