Ishii Clinic — Electric fork mimics the taste of salt

The ever increasing standards of health and wellbeing is also another aspiration consumers race towards. Once, living healthy meant not falling sick or being overweight. Today it’s all about getting your quinoa bowls and kale shakes right. For the average consumer, it’s just confusing.

This is a playful example from Japan, but it highlights a consumer expectation: that brands should help them live the lifestyles they aspire to. In March 2016, Kanagawa-based Ishii Clinic unveiled the pop-up No Salt Restaurant, which paired a menu of salt-free dishes with the Electro Fork. Aiming to combat excessive salt intake and the health issues associated it, the Electro Fork uses gustation technology (which alters the taste of food using cathodal currents) to mimic the taste of salt by delivering a mild current to the taste buds when diners press a button. The device has three levels of electric current, with different degrees of saltiness, and runs for six hours on a single charge.