Evaluation of hazardous chemicals in edible insects and insect-based food intended for human consumption

Poma, Giulia; Cuykx, Matthias; Amato, Elvio D.; Calaprice, Chiara; Focant, Jean François; Covaci, Adrian

doi:10.1016/j.fct.2016.12.006

Cited by 185 publications

(128 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Studies on the level of organic and metal contaminants ( e.g . polychlorinated biphenyl, DDT, dioxin compounds, heavy metals) in both whole edible insects and insect‐based food items in Belgium found that all contaminant levels were generally lower than that was found in other common animal products (Poma ). This study indicates that consuming insects presents no more of a microbial or contaminant risk than consuming other meat sources, when the same good practice standards of preparation are applied.…”

Section: Hurdles To the Use Of Insects As Food And Feedmentioning

confidence: 96%

Opportunities and hurdles of edible insects for food and feed

2017

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Entomophagy, the consumption of insects, is promoted as an alternative sustainable source of protein for humans and animals. Seminal literature highlights predominantly the benefits, but with limited empirical support and evaluation. We highlight the historical significance of entomophagy by humans and key opportunities and hurdles identified by research to date, paying particular attention to research gaps. It is known that insects present a nutritional opportunity, being generally high in protein and key micronutrients, but it is unclear how their nutritional quality is influenced by what they are fed. Research indicates that, in ideal conditions, insects have a smaller environmental impact than more traditional Western forms of animal protein; less known is how to scale up insect production while maintaining these environmental benefits. Studies overall show that insects could make valuable economic and nutritional contributions to the food or feed systems, but there are no clear regulations in place to bring insects into such supply systems. Future research needs to examine how the nutritional value of insects can be managed systematically, establish clear processing and storage methodology, define rearing practices and implement regulations with regard to food and feed safety. Each of these aspects should be considered within the specifics of concrete supply and value chains, depending on whether insects are intended for food or for feed, to ensure insects are a sound economic, nutritional and sustainable protein alternative -not just a more expensive version of poultry for food, or soya for feed.

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Section: Hurdles To the Use Of Insects As Food And Feedmentioning

confidence: 96%

Opportunities and hurdles of edible insects for food and feed

2017

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“…Poma et al. () tested insects and insect‐derived products placed on the market for 12 different PCBs compounds. The concentration detected in cricket‐derived products showed that they were within the safe margins of PCBs levels according to EU legislations.…”

Section: Chemical Hazardsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Other studies suggest that the Orthoptera genus is less efficient in bioaccumulation of PCBs compared with Coleoptera (Blankenship et al, 2005). Poma et al (2017) tested insects and insect-derived products placed on the market for 12 different PCBs compounds. The concentration detected in cricket-derived products showed that they were within the safe margins of PCBs levels according to EU legislations.…”

Section: 3mentioning

confidence: 99%

Novel foods: a risk profile for the house cricket (Acheta domesticus)

Fernández-Cassi¹,

Supeanu²,

Jansson³

et al. 2018

EFS2

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Novel foods could represent a sustainable alternative to traditional farming and conventional foodstuffs. Starting in 2018, Regulation (EU) 2283/2015 entered into force, laying down provisions for the approval of novel foods in Europe, including insects. This Approved Regulation establishes the requirements that enable Food Business Operators to bring new foods into the EU market, while ensuring high levels of food safety for European consumers. The present risk profile tackles the hazards for one of the most promising novel food insects, the house cricket (Acheta domesticus). The risk profile envisages a closed A. domesticus crickets rearing system, under Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) and good farming practices (GFP), in contrast with open cricket farms. The methodology used involves screening the literature and identifying possible hazards, followed by adding relevant inclusion criteria for the evidence obtained. These criteria include animal health and food safety aspects, for the entire lifespan of crickets, based on the farm to fork One Health principle. When data were scarce, comparative evidence from close relatives of the Orthoptera genus was used (e.g. grasshoppers, locusts and other cricket species). Nevertheless, significant data gaps in animal health and food safety are present. Even if HACCP‐type systems are implemented, the risk profile identifies the following considerable concerns: (1) high total aerobic bacterial counts; (2) survival of spore‐forming bacteria following thermal processing; (3) allergenicity of insects and insect‐derived products; and (4) the bioaccumulation of heavy metals (e.g. cadmium). Other hazards like parasites, fungi, viruses, prions, antimicrobial resistance and toxins are ranked as low risk. For some hazards, a need for additional evidence is highlighted.

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“…Recently, chemical hazards on edible insect and their detection were shown [61]. Apart from the environmental contaminations and the possibility for several chemicals to accumulate in the farmed insect, the levels of contamination were relatively low and concentrations were similar or lower than those measured in commonly eaten animal products, such as meat, fish, and eggs.…”

Section: Potential Hazards Identificationmentioning

confidence: 92%

Constraints of HACCP Application on Edible Insect for Food and Feed

Fraqueza¹,

CoutinhoPatarata²

2017

Future Foods

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In a near future there is a need to guaranty food security for approximately more than one billion people worldwide. Beyond the population increase other factors contribute to food and feed insecurity such as climate changes, rising costs of animal protein and consumer demands for protein. Edible insects are pointed out as one alternative as they have always been a part of human diets. The concern to guaranty food security cannot be dissociated from food safety and under the Codex Alimentarius principles of food hygiene, insects would be comparable to other types of foods of animal origin. The processing and storage of insects and their products should follow the same health and sanitation regulations as for any other food or feed in order to ensure their microbiological and chemical safety. Allergies induced through insects' ingestion should also be considered. This review aims to identify potential hazards related to edible insects' production and transformation. Preventive measures to their control will be presented considering prerequirements in their production and transformation. An HACCP plan will be described as a study case in insects' transformation, being discussed all constraints regarding implementation.

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Evaluation of hazardous chemicals in edible insects and insect-based food intended for human consumption

Cited by 185 publications

References 34 publications

Opportunities and hurdles of edible insects for food and feed

Opportunities and hurdles of edible insects for food and feed

Novel foods: a risk profile for the house cricket (Acheta domesticus)

Constraints of HACCP Application on Edible Insect for Food and Feed

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