Insects as human food; from farm to fork

Abstract

Over the course of the last few years, the consumption of insects, known as entomophagy, has sparked increasing interest amongst scientists and environmentalists as a potential solution to the inevitable global food security and sustainability issues humans will be facing in the coming years. Despite the fact that insects have been an integral part of over 2 billion people's diet worldwide, the concept of eating insects is still new to Western culture. As a result, there are many unknowns regarding insects as a food source, and this has led to a number of studies and investigations being done in recent years to create more knowledge and awareness around this new concept in the food industry. This review discusses some of the key topics and new developments published over recent years, such as the nutritional benefits, food safety concerns, functional properties, potential product concepts and the current ideas and attitudes towards insects as a food source in Western culture. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Entomophagy: A Narrative Review on Nutritional Value, Safety, Cultural Acceptance and A Focus on the Role of Food Neophobia in Italy

“…The protein content of insects ranges from 7% to 68% ( Table 1 ) and in current literature, huge declines in the edible insects’ protein content during processing have been identified [ 20 , 21 ]. Non-protein nitrogen (NPN) in insects (chitin, nucleic acids, phospholipids, as well as ammonia in the intestinal tract) could lead to an overestimation of the protein content [ 22 ]. For this reason, instead of the conversion factor (Kp) of 6.25 generally used for proteins, a Kp of 4.76 has been suggested for whole larvae (from Tenebrio molitor , Alphitobius diaperinus and Hermetia illucens ) and 5.60 for protein extracts derived from the larvae of the three insects studied [ 22 , 23 ].…”

Extracts from the edible insects Acheta domesticus and Tenebrio molitor with improved fatty acid profile due to ultrasound assisted or pressurized liquid extraction

“…In this regard, in addition to protein, lipids are also the main component of insects, a source of energy and essential fatty acids. Insects have a high and variable fat content, being the second major component after proteins, with a range of 5-74% expressed in dry weight (Bessa, Pieterse, Sigge, & Hoffman, 2018). Therefore, the production of insect extracts under specific conditions, especially by the use of less polar solvents, might lead to the production of extracts with a concentrated amount of lipids.…”

Feeding Bugs to Bugs: Edible Insects Modify the Human Gut Microbiome in an in vitro Fermentation Model

“…By contrast, in most Western countries people view entomophagy with disgust or even as culturally inappropriate therefore consumption is infrequent ( van Huis et al, 2013 ). However, with greater awareness of the environmental footprint associated with the livestock industry and concerns around sustainability of agriculture and the impacts of climate change on productive systems, there is becoming a greater recognition and acceptance of insects as an additional and healthy protein source ( Bessa et al, 2017 ; Loveday, 2019 ; Patel et al, 2019 ). Insects are composed of 30–80% protein on a dry matter basis ( Rumpold and Schlüter, 2013 ; Patel et al, 2019 ) and are far more efficient in converting feed to bodyweight than traditional mammalian livestock ( van Huis and Oonincx, 2017 ).…”