Do you print spaghetti?

Barilla, world’s biggest pasta maker, successfully copies Nestlé’s NESPRESSO strategy.

Everybody can brew a coffee and everybody can make pasta – at least boil the hardened ones out of the bag or pack. 

In 1976, Eric Favre, an employee of Nestlé, invented and patented the Nespresso system. Nestlé introduced it 1986 in the market after having developed one of the most successful marketing strategies ever experienced. 

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The concept (machine, capsule, service) is subject to 1,700 patents which protect Nespresso’s ownership of the concept until the patents expire. This contrasts with some other prepackaged coffee preparation systems. This has led to comparisons of Nespresso with printer manufacturers that tried to hinder the sale of generic ink cartridges, to achieve a vendor lock-in effect.
It was reported that Nespresso sales have been growing at an average of 30 percent per year over the past 10 years and more than 20 billion capsules have been sold since 2000 at a current selling price equivalent to about USD 0.43 to USD 0.62 per capsule.

And now it’s Barilla’s turn. Barilla is to launch a 3D printer for pasta. 
The idea leverages both the commonly cited abilities of 3D printing and the more touchy-feely aspects of fine cooking. In terms of efficiency, Barilla thinks their printer could get a dish in front of a customer in a few minutes flat. And since the printer lays down each layer individually, a custom-designed pasta noodle would take no longer than a simple fettuccine. 

The principle is simple:

As Nestlé and the printer industry do, Barilla hopes to sell, not machines, but pasta cartridges. Barilla’s pasta cartridges will be the real money-maker. When you buy coffee beans you pay about USD 10 per kilogram. When you buy Nespresso coffee, you pay  USD 95 to 114 per kilogram – roughly 10 times more. How much will cost a spoon full spaghetti?

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Buon appetito!