Open source food?!

Yes, Open Source Food.  But in all things, there is a catch.

As mentioned in the previous post, we will be discussing copyright and patents in an upcoming topic.  For now, it is proper to note that a recipe may be copyright as it would fall under "prior art".  So one cannot simply share the recipes we collect without understanding that we could possibly be sued.  Even worse, and more crazy sounding, if you get a recipe and change it while following it, that also can fall under copyright infringement.


But, even a lawyer would probably say that's nuts, yet follow that judgement with a disclaimer at the very least suggesting not to share recipes you got out of a cook book.

(NB:  Since writing this article, I have come upon some information specifically relating to recipes and copyright in the US.  There is also an article from a law professional which indicates how a recipe can be copyrightable.  These are certainly interpretations and your mileage may vary.  But the key point remains, giving attribution and that ingredients may not be copyrightable, the instructions for preparing a dish might be.  While it is suggested there aren't many lawsuits over recipes, there is certainly precedence of people being sued by republishing content they thought was not copyright, when the purpose of the work is making money.)

And that's the reason and aim of open source food.  To move beyond such antiquated and restrictive laws and allow people not only to share (and share alike) recipes, but also to encourage the changing of recipes and share those changes.

Yes, there are plenty of web sites with free recipes and what you do in your home, for your own personal consumption, is mostly your business.  Yet there is certainly a precedence to be made for Open Source food.

For one example of a specific focused open source food, there's OpenCola.  The intro is light hearted and fun, yet the clear and dark soda recipes appear valid, as is the open source license it falls under.

Another example of what probably represents real world recipes, appears at Fork the Cookbook.  There is no indexing, there.  Get a list of random recipes and if none of them suit your purpose, get another random list.  But I think the real work (and joy, and value) happens once you dive in.

As an example, there is Chubby Hubby Cupcakes.  When you open up the recipe, you Vanilla Bean Cupcakes.  And at the time of my reading, it had two forks.  That obviously means there are two derivatives from the Chubby Hubby Cupcakes.  But then, and probably the most important, is the social aspect.  Any recipes can be shared in the most popular, social sites including Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.  At the very least, it is a very interesting web site and you will mostly find what you expect.  What you will also find is, what it was forked from.

So, if you are tired of making the same thing, over and over again, and don't feel like messing with your personal, tried and true favourites, then give Open Source recipes a try.