What if our food future went through the consumption of insects?
If it is now possible to offer some locusts as an aperitif without having to embark for Asia or Africa, it is also possible to make entomophagy a way of life. Some websites offer a variety of edible insect products. But are we all ready to join the 2.5 billion people who already consume insects around the world? The question is worth asking because natural resources are running out as the world’s population grows. Can insects help us preserve our planet and reduce our ecological bill, while offering a healthy and satisfying diet?
The mode of production of edible insects.
What few people know is that everyone can raise their own insects. The cricket, for example, is easy to breed and not very demanding. Aside from the noise. But it is not enough to capture a cricket from your garden, it is even discouraged. Some pet shops offer breeding crickets that must be reproduced for consumption. Edible insects kits are available on the internet. Just find a good place in a garage, an attic or an outbuilding and follow the instructions step by step.
If you buy edible insects in France, there are farms that offer a beautiful traceability of their insects. Some farms also offer guided tours. What reassure the consumer.
Which products contain edible insects?
Western manufacturers are beginning to offer edible insects and are looking into this segment. Although entomophagy is still under study, it seems that in the form of flour or pasta, the consumption of insects is attractive to Westerners and their nutritional and health requirements.
Locust flour.
According to an American study published in Nature’s Scientific Report, eating insects would improve the gut microbiota. For two weeks, twenty guinea pigs drank at breakfast, the equivalent of 25 grams of cricket meat turned into flour, then cooked in the form of muffins. The very amazing results showed that a certain blood inflammatory protein TNF-Alfa was declining. This inflammatory protein is targeted in anti cancer treatments. What cheers the researchers who pushed further their investigations by isolating the famous bacterium type Bifidobacterium animalis. This bacterium is beneficial to the functioning of our intestinal flora. Farewell to colitis, abdominal cramps and digestive discomfort.
Pasta made from cricket meat.
With a protein content of 54%, they display 378 calories per 100 grams. It’s a good result, nutritionally speaking. Even if this dish can not be self sufficient, just add some vegetables and a drizzle of olive oil. Tastefully, cricket meat has no more taste than traditional pasta with wheat or eggs. It is therefore worthwhile to offer a little exoticism.
From cereal bars to insect meal.
This may surprise many, but you can consume insects before taking a walk to the gym, to fill up with vitamins and amino acids. Note, however, that like any food there is a risk of allergy to consume edible insects.
The cost of edible insects.
If you do your own cricket breeding yourself, you will need to invest a minimum. But this will allow you to make substantial savings later. Edible insects are still expensive, and products containing them require health studies to provide a minimum of health risk. However, to raise a recipe (pumpkin soup, sauce or even pastries), its cost remains controlled and reasonable. And if you want to enjoy an original aperitif with friends, kits to consume at opening are not more expensive than Spanish tapas. With the added bonus of being digestive.