Gizmo technology report-- edible inkjetting

I'm on a lot of press-release mailing lists, and I get some pretty unusual press releases. Here's an excerpt from one that came in last week (the full text is here):

Press Release: FUJIFILM Dimatix Unit Announces Breakthrough in Decorating Chocolate Digitally; Plans Debut at IFT 2007 Food Expo in July

Lebanon, N.H., July 18, 2007 - Building on its growing success in commercial food decoration, the Dimatix Technology Integration unit (DTI) of FUJIFILM Dimatix, Inc. today announced it has developed a breakthrough technique that employs the latest digital jetting technology in decorating dark or light nonporous foods with white text, graphics and geometric patterns.

Yes, now you can get an inkjet printer that prints directly on food. I imagine this product is fairly expensive: "Fully configured, a DTI Merlin FG system can easily decorate up to 65,000 food items per minute."

But a cheaper solution to this problem has been around for a while: edible paper and ink (for example, here). I've always enjoyed discovering new applications for technology. I believe that by studying how other people have solved unusual problems, you can learn how to find solutions to your own problems. That's the inventor's skill, and it can be both personally and professionally rewarding.