ColeopterYUM

Insects as a food source? Why not? We rape and pillage nearly everything else on the planet. Insects are fast growing, have a high fecundity, some are multivoltine, convert feed efficiently, have low space requirements and are possibly delicious. They could be the answer to a sustainable food source for the earths growing population.

I was inspired to delve into the exquisite world of insect cuisine and explore it after watching numerous accounts of a personal hero: Bear Grylls, gorging himself on squirming insects. Bear seems like a man who knows how to keep himself alive, and insects seem to keep him going. The article that I found and interested me into entomophagy (the consumption of insects) was “Nutritional composition and safety aspects of edible insects” by Birgit A. Rumpold and Oliver K. Schlu¨ ter.

 

http://importfood.com/thai_insects.html 

Entomophagy has been a part of life for numerous cultures around the world for thousands of years as insects are regarded as being highly nutritious and full of protein and energy. One study showed that consuming 100g of caterpillar gives you 76% of your daily intake of protein and nearly 100% of your daily intake of vitamins. The energy intake was very similar to that of normal consumable meats.

 From the different orders of insects, the average contents of insects are proteins and fats, followed by fibre, nitrogen-free extract and ash.

As can be seen from figure 1 above, proteins make up the majority of the composition of insects. The average protein contents of insects range from 35.34% for Isoptera to 61.32% for Orthoptera. For 100grams of most mainstream sources of protein around today like meats and beans, insects trump them with a higher protein content. In a trial with rats fed with crickets (orthoptera), and rats fed on soy beans, it was shown that the insects were a better source of amino acids than the soy beans. A similar study was also done on chickens showing similar results.

Fats also make up a high composition of insects. The fatty acids in insects are similar to those found in fish and poultry, and also have low cholesterol contents.

 Research has shown that although insects are low in calcium and potassium, they are good potential sources of micronutrients like copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus selenium and zinc. The levels of the micronutrients in edible insects could also be controlled by the type of feed provided for the insects.

 Besides providing just minerals, insects can also be a valuable source of vitamins. It has been shown that 100g of insect dry matter is rich in riboflavin, pantothenic acid and biotin, and also folic acid which are all essential vitamins for humans. Some vitamins like vitamin A, C and niacin were not at efficient levels in 100g of insect dry matter. In contrast to this however, it has been shown that an insect tea contained 15.04mg of vitamin C per 100g. The Food and Agricultural Organisation of America recommend 45mg of vitamin C per day for an adult, so 300mL of insect tea covers this, which is just over the size of a normal cup of tea. Mmmmm… Edible insects can provide important sources of vitamins, although insects do need to be selected for specific vitamins. The vitamin content of insects could also be selected via the insects feed.

Eating insects may not be all fun and games however! Just like other edible plants and animals, caution does need to be applied to the consumption of some insect species. Some insects contain allergens and other toxins which would be detrimental to human health if consumed. An example of this is the African silkworm. It was recently shown that the silkworms contain a heat resistant thiaminase that has been responsible for seasonal ataxic syndrome cases due to a thiamine deficiency in Nigeria over the last 40 years. Insects, like shellfish, can also cause allergic reactions in people when consumed. Like other consumable plants and animals, there is always the risk of food poisoning and poor food preparation causing illness to the consumer. Insects that are harvested from the wild may contain traces of pesticides in them which could be harmful for human health; however this may be rectified by controlled feeding of artificially raised insects.
http://itthing.com/strange-weird-meals-made-with-insects

It can be concluded that edible insects are a potential food source for the earths growing human populations of the coming years. They are high in energy, proteins, and fats and contain valuable minerals and vitamins. A huge advantage of them is that their composition can be manipulated by their feed matter, allowing for an easy way to get much needed substances and minerals into populations of humans in need of them specifically. More research is needed into how to raise and manipulate compositions and also on insect’s storage and preparation for eating. Before this goes too far though, the cultural issue of consuming insects needs to be overcome by today’s fickle minded and squeamish steak and potato eating humanoids.

Thanks for reading my blog guys. The link to the article is below and is well worth a read. It also has a list of all known edible insects’ species in the world, so get out there and start sampling them!

 

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/mnfr.201200735/abstract;jsessionid=0E8226C75C3F01C10ABB12C3F29397A7.d03t03

 

LAND where you want to be!

 

Nick