Space food is a variety of food products, specially created and
processed for consumption by
astronauts in
outer space. The food has specific requirements of providing balanced nutrition for individuals working in space, while being easy and safe to store, prepare and consume in the machinery-filled
low gravity environments of manned
spacecraft. In recent years, space food has been used by various nations engaging on space programs as a way to share and show off their
cultural identity and facilitate
intercultural communication. Although astronauts consume a wide variety of foods and beverages in space, the initial idea from The Man in Space Committee of the Space Science Board was to supply astronauts with a formula diet that would supply all the needed vitamins and nutrients.