I like that they aren't saying "get rid of food entirely." Tonight my wife and I are going out to celebrate our anniversary and the idea of not having a really nice meal together as a part of the celebration just wouldn't seem right. But there are countless meals that I have which are less than "special." Soylent would could potentially be a great replacement for 70% of the meals I consume. I imagine it will take some time to get away from pull of communal dining. We've been gathering around a fire or hearth for centuries as groups to consume food. It's such an enormous part of our social/familial fabric. Will people still gather to consume Soylent in the same way?
Exactly Steve, I don't think this is meant as a complete replacement, just as a way to take more control over your nutritional intake. Right now most of us are forced to engage in a rather sporadic nutritional lifestyle, sometimes eating really well, other times not so well. The idea of Soylent seems to be a) to offer a more structured approach to nutrition during those periods when we have to compromise and b) to offer those people who don't have choices a way to guarantee proper nutrition throughout their week. The developers clearly don't intend it to be a replacement for 'social dining' and why should it? It's an interesting idea, and particularly the DIY part.
The creator of Soylent has a different, much more ambitious goal than just replace food. I think he's trying to make a substance that will be much better and more efficient than 'regular' food. Giving the body not just what it needs but what it could use to make the most out of itself. Check out Tim Feriss' test of the beta Soylent. A more neutral point of view to say the least. Interesting as this is, it's very arrogant to assume we can know what the body needs and reverse engineer from that. It scarily reminds me of the birth defects caused by Softenon in the sixties, when we found out that different turning molecules can have a radical difference on the birth of babies. I really hope it succeeds but they might be treading on dangerous grounds.replacement