| At nearly £14,000 to send a kilogram of food into space, cosmic cuisine doesn't come cheap. But by December this year, Nasa plans to have grown its own food in space for the first time. As well as cutting costs, Nasa is hoping its space farm will be scaled up to deliver a lasting supply of food for astronauts on deep space missions.  By December, Nasa plans to have grown its own food in space for the first time. In preparation for the project, the space agency grew plants under red and blue lights to better understand growth patterns It could also provide something called 'horticultural therapy' for astronauts to reduce stress, alleviate depression and improve their overall general health. The work is part of the Vegetable Production System (VEGGIE) to grow six romaine lettuce plants under pink LED lamps, according to a report by Modern Farmer. Jesse Hirsch reports that Kevlar pillow-packs, filled with a material similar to kitty litter, will function as planters for the lettuce which will be ready to harvest after just 28 days. Nasa claims that after extensive testing on plants on Earth, it doesn't expect zero-gravity conditions to affect the growth of the plants.  The Vegetable Production System (VEGGIE) will grow six lettuce plants under pink LED lamps in space  Nasa claims that after extensive testing on plants on Earth, it doesn't expect zero-gravity conditions to change the growth of the plants. Dr Matthew Mickens, a plant biologist from North Carolina Agriculture and Technical State University, is pictured measuring Cherry Bomb Hybrid II radish plants for Nasa THE RECIPE FOR A SUCCESSFUL MISSION TO MARS Earlier this year, a team of 'gastronauts' spent four months living in a small dome on a barren Hawaii lava field, trying to find out what foods astronauts might eat on a mission to Mars. The group of six had been working as part of a $1 million Nasa HI-SEAS (Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation) project. Team commander Angelo Vermeulen said the problem with ingredients that are not perishable is they're usually highly processed and lack fibre. He added that he was impressed with how freeze dried products taste very similar to fresh produce. A favourite among the crew was nutella, the chocolate-hazelnut spread. 'It's something we craved,' he said. 'We had a limited supply so we had to ration it.' The bigger problems is cosmic microbes that could develop in the lettuce. Nasa said all plants grown in on the International Space Station (ISS) in December will undergo strict testing on Earth before they are consumed. While Nasa has tested plant growth in space before for academic purposes, this is the first project to grow food with the aim of sustaining future astronauts. Last month, Nasa also revealed that it had given 3D printer firm Systems & Materials Research Corporation (SMRC) a six month, $125,000 grant to focus on developing a universal food synthesiser. The device is similar to the 'replicator' used in several of the Star Trek TV series which enabled crew members to create their favourite foods. Nasa said it is investing in the project because it wants to make it easier to transport nutrients in bulk through space.  Astronaut Peggy Whitson, flight engineer (left) and Cosmonaut Valery Korzun, commander (right), are showing eating a meal send from Earth. The current cost of sending food into space is around £14,000 per kg SMRC's founder Anjan Contractor added that the device will also help solve the Earth's looming food crisis. Meanwhile, China has said it is preparing plans to grow fresh vegetables on Mars and the moon after researchers successfully completed a preliminary test in Beijing. Four kinds of vegetables were grown in an 'ecological life support system', a 300 cubic metre cabin which will allow astronauts to develop their own stocks of air, water and food while on space missions. The system, which relies on plants and algae, is 'expected to be used in extra-terrestrial bases on the moon or Mars', according to a report by Xinhua news agency. Share or comment on this article
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