New | Fancy a pretty pancake? Pick a design and this Chinese start-up will make it with a 3D printer

A start-up by seven graduates from China’s prestigious Tsinghua University has come up with a 3D-printing machine to create a wide variety of fanciful pancakes.

Coming in the shapes of popular cartoon characters such as Hello Kitty, Despicable Me’s Minions and so on, the pancakes were sold at 10 yuan (HK$12) each at a food festival in Beijing last month, the Legal Evening News reported.

The creative pancakes drew a large crowd, especially women and children, said Wang Xin, one of the young entrepreneurs.

Wang said he and six of his university mates from Tsinghua’s software college started their company to manufacture 3D-printing machines last year, after they were lured into the business by the booming 3D-printing market.

They came up with the idea of 3D-printed food after being inspired by a friend who was selling pancakes, he said.