Printing out sweeter treats
It bears a resemblance to the machine that shrinks Mike Teavee in the Roald Dahl story Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
And, by all accounts, the technology seems Wonka-esque.
However, The Remarkable Sweet Shop 3-D gummy printer is real. From spiders to castles and even personalised selfies, it prints ‘‘very tasty’’, all natural 3-D lollies in eight flavours.
The $30,000 Magic Candy Factory was officially launched to the public during the Queenstown Winter Festival this week.
The German engineered product had already had a couple of corporate outings with a ‘‘really positive’’ response, The Remarkable Sweet Shop managing director Jono Palmer said.
He called the 3-D gummy printer ‘‘the Tesla of the confectionary world’’.
‘‘Kids just love it. They really respond to it. It’s great entertainment.’’
Palmer said the printer was one of only about 30 in operation around the world and the only one in the southern hemisphere.
The company had to make a pitch to producer Katjes at a German trade show in February to be allowed to buy it.
But it was not the 3-D printer that initially drew Palmer to the company, but rather the vegan sweets it was producing.
While hunting for a healthy option, Palmer came across the printer, which he thought was both unique and healthy.
‘‘That’s really where we see the future lies – all natural.’’
The technology works by loading a tailored amount of gummy mixture into the printer, keying a few commands on a tablet – including selecting the flavour and one of over 100 shapes – and pressing print.
‘‘The entire experience takes about 10 minutes. The taste experience is really good – amazing flavours,’’ Palmer said.
The Remarkable Sweet Shop has three stores in the Queenstown area.
Items from the 3-D gummy printer are available to purchase during the Queenstown Winter Festival until Sunday.