Should We Start Eating Insects?

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Discussion
Conclusion
References

Introduction

World hunger is one of the major problems of our time, occupying the minds of scientists, politicians, activists, and ordinary people worldwide. Despite more than half a century of efforts, almost 9 % of the world’s population is undernourished and permanently in a state of starvation (Roser & Ritchie 2019). A quarter of the world’s population (1.9 billion) is at least moderately insecure (Roser & Ritchie 2019). Even in the United States, one of the most developed countries in the world, there are more than 34 million food-insecure people who are constantly fluctuating between a hunger state and adequate nutrition (Roser & Ritchie 2019). Add to this the ever-growing environmental problems, the depletion of fertile land, overfishing, deforestation, and various types of pollution, and it becomes clear that with the methods currently in use, the hunger issue cannot be solved.

Discussion

Humanity needs not only food in the form of empty calories containing energy. People need adequate nutrition containing the full range of vitamins and minerals. That is why many scientists and social activists are looking for alternative sustainable food production and consumption methods. Entomophagy is a technically unattractive term used by the scientific community to refer to the eating of insects, their eggs, larvae, and pupae.

Humans have included various beetles in their food for thousands of years as food has always been scarce. In the traditional societies of Asia, Africa, Mexico, and South America, insects were and are still used as part of the diet (Govorushko 2019). In ancient Greece and Rome, they were used as snacks or delicacies in the same way as they are now in China and other Asian countries (Govorushko 2019). There are many ways to cook insects deliciously or crush them and add them to food as a valuable source of protein, minerals, and vitamins (Govorushko 2019). Why is it that people in the Western community are so opposed to the idea of eating insects? Will we ever start eating bugs on a regular basis? Is there any evidence that we should actually do this?

Many believe that insects are a new and promising source of farmed food that combines high nutritional value with low environmental impact. The most common type is cricket flour, which is 80% protein and contains fats, trace elements, and minerals (Kim et al. 2019). Compared with beef, crickets have a similar amount of protein – 20 grams per 100 grams of product, with more iron and calcium than in beef (Kim et al. 2019). At the same time, cows are one of the most resource-intensive animals to keep, causing damage to the environment on an industrial scale (Berggren et al. 2019). All this makes insects a valuable source of bioavailable macro- and microelements. At the same time, their farming is cheap and environmentally friendly, having low carbon, water, and ecological footprints.

Another benefit of eating insects is their bioavailability to humans. In other words, while people may experience digestive difficulties with plant foods, insects are well broken down by enzymes already present in the human body (Elhassan et al. 2019). Compared to plant foods, bugs, and larvae have no indigestible constituents, such as fiber or antinutrients (Elhassan et al. 2019). Insects do not need additional processing to extract valuable substances from them. Simply drying or frying them without oil is enough to make nutritious protein powders and flours (Elhassan et al. 2019). This means that the average consumer does not necessarily have to eat whole bugs and feel bad about it. Insects can easily be turned into baked goods, bread, sweet protein bars, and more. If consumers refuse to purchase industrial quantities of insects, they are nutritious food for pets such as chickens or pigs.

Despite all of these advantages, the idea of using insects for food has many active opponents. Some of the arguments about widespread industrial entomophagy drawbacks have objective grounds. First, there are no existent studies on the large-scale consumption of insects (Elhassan et al. 2019). In traditional cultures, bugs are eaten occasionally as a snack or a rare delicacy. The human digestive system may be unable to cope with the increased volumes of insect-containing foods in the form of powders. Second, humans still need to develop an industrial system for farming insects for food. People do not know what problems, infections, fungi, or parasites they may encounter and how to treat or control them (Elhassan et al. 2019). In animal agriculture, technologies and techniques have been developed over the centuries, so producers are thoroughly aware of the standards that protect consumers from possible harm.

However, most people experience a mental barrier and psychological rejection of the idea of eating insects. Even if crickets are offered as flour or a candy bar, they are rejected by potential consumers (Kim et al. 2019). Adults refuse to try insect products even when the benefits of eating insects for ecology and physiological safety are explained to them (Sogari et al. 2019). Scientists hope that younger generations will change their minds about insect consumption if they become aware since childhood of the potential benefits of a range of problems, including climate change, world hunger, and malnutrition (Sogari et al. 2019). Moreover, neophobia and disgust among people probably have a biological basis since insects in nature are carriers of many infections and parasites.

Conclusion

The world hunger crisis is a fundamental problem of modern humanity because millions of people suffer from it daily. In desperation, we are looking for any means, including such extravagant ones as industrial farming of insects for food consumption. In terms of logic and facts, this idea seems promising. Despite that, it needs to be clarified whether it has a future if ordinary people do not want to try bugs under any sauce.

References

Berggren, Åsa, Anna Jansson, and Matthew Low. 2019. “Approaching Ecological Sustainability in the Emerging Insects-as-Food Industry.” Trends in Ecology & Evolution 34 (2): 132–38. Web.

Elhassan, Mohammed, Karin Wendin, Viktoria Olsson, and Maud Langton. 2019. “Quality Aspects of Insects as Food—Nutritional, Sensory, and Related Concepts.” Foods 8 (3): 95. Web.

Govorushko, Sergey. 2019. “Global Status of Insects as Food and Feed Source: A Review.” Trends in Food Science & Technology 9: 436–45. Web.

Kim, Tae-Kyung, Hae In Yong, Young-Boong Kim, Hyun-Wook Kim, and Yun-Sang Choi. 2019. “Edible Insects as a Protein Source: A Review of Public Perception, Processing Technology, and Research Trends.” Food Science of Animal Resources 39 (4): 521–40. Web.

Roser, Max & Ritchie, Hannah. 2019. “Hunger and undernourishment.” Our World in Data. Web.

Sogari, Giovanni, Diana Bogueva, and Dora Marinova. 2019. “Australian Consumers’ Response to Insects as Food.” Agriculture 9 (5): 108. Web.

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Should We Start Eating Insects?

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