<![CDATA[Bugs are food of the future: UN agency]]>ROME - Beetles, caterpillars and wasps could supplement diets around the world as an environmentally friendly food source if only Western consumers could get over their \"disgust\", the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said on Monday.


\"The main message is really: 'Eat insects'\", Eva Mueller, director of forest economics at the FAO, told a press conference in Rome.

\"Insects are abundant and they are a valuable source of protein and minerals,\" she said.

\"Two billion people - a third of the world's population - are already eating insects because they are delicious and nutritious,\" she said.

Also speaking at the press conference was Gabon Forestry Minister Gabriel Tchango who said: \"Insect consumption is part of our daily life.\"

He said some insects - like beetle larvae and grilled termites - were delicacies.

\"Insects contribute about 10 per cent of animal protein consumed by the population,\" he said.

The report said insect farming was \"one of the many ways to address food and feed insecurity\".

\"Insects are everywhere and they reproduce quickly, and they have high growth and feed conversion rates and a low environmental footprint,\" said the report, co-authored by the FAO and Wageningen University in the Netherlands.

But the authors admitted that \"consumer disgust remains one of the largest barriers to the adoption of insects as viable sources of protein in many Western countries\".

It suggested that the food industry could help in \"raising the status of insects\" by including them in recipes and putting them on restaurant menus.

The report also called for wider use of insects as feed for livestock, saying that poor regulation and under-investment currently meant it \"cannot compete\" with traditional sources of feed.

\"The use of insects on a large scale as a feed ingredient is technically feasible, and established companies in various parts of the world are already leading the way,\" it added, highlighting in particular producers in China, South Africa, Spain and the United States.

\"Insects can supplement traditional feed sources such as soy, maize, grains and fishmeal,\" it said, adding that the ones with most potential were larvae of the black soldier fly, the common housefly and the yellow mealworm.

The report also said the insects most commonly consumed by humans are beetles (31 per cent), caterpillars (18 per cent) and bees, wasps and ants (14 per cent), followed by grasshoppers, locusts and crickets (13 per cent).

It said trade in insects was thriving in cities such as Bangkok and Kinshasa and that a similar culture of insect consumption - entomophagy - should be established elsewhere, stressing that it was often cheaper to farm insects.

The report concluded: \"History has shown that dietary patterns can change quickly, particularly in a globalised world. The rapid acceptance of raw fish in the form of sushi is a good example.\"

http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Science%2Band%2BTech/Story/A1Story20130513-422307.html

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/topic/55823/bugs-are-food-of-the-future-un-agencyRSS for NodeWed, 06 May 2026 17:20:24 GMTMon, 13 May 2013 14:09:14 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Mon, 24 Mar 2014 12:57:56 GMT]]>I am ok with insects with dry exoskeleton type. Should taste like keropok and fried fritters.


It's the soft squishy maggot type that I will steer clear of. Just imagine biting into sago plant white fat maggots :yikes: :siam:

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1246751https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1246751Mon, 24 Mar 2014 12:57:56 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Wed, 15 May 2013 02:32:33 GMT]]>

CloudeeDaz:
durianlove1974:


I suppose if bugs are fried and seasoned, it should have a crunchy texture similar to ikan bilis.

I can imagine one needs to eat a lot of bugs to feel full.


But you don’t have to have a meal full of bugs.
If the texture is like ikan bilis, then use it like you would use ikan bilis. πŸ˜„
Eg.... as a side dish for ur nasi lemak, or cooked in sambal with some nuts....

Bugs are a protein food so would substitute for meat, not carbo.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1003649https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1003649Wed, 15 May 2013 02:32:33 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Wed, 15 May 2013 02:24:25 GMT]]>

durianlove1974:

I suppose if bugs are fried and seasoned, it should have a crunchy texture similar to ikan bilis.

I can imagine one needs to eat a lot of bugs to feel full.

But you don’t have to have a meal full of bugs.
If the texture is like ikan bilis, then use it like you would use ikan bilis. πŸ˜„
Eg.... as a side dish for ur nasi lemak, or cooked in sambal with some nuts....

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1003642https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1003642Wed, 15 May 2013 02:24:25 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Wed, 15 May 2013 02:12:04 GMT]]>I suppose if bugs are fried and seasoned, it should have a crunchy texture similar to ikan bilis.


I can imagine one needs to eat a lot of bugs to feel full.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1003632https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1003632Wed, 15 May 2013 02:12:04 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Tue, 14 May 2013 09:50:20 GMT]]>

tankee:
In the future, never complain about the bug you found in the food served to you or the restaurant may charge you extra for the 'topping' πŸ˜‰

Bugs bred for eating should be in cleaner environments - who knows where the restaurant bugs have been?

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1003183https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1003183Tue, 14 May 2013 09:50:20 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Tue, 14 May 2013 07:21:54 GMT]]>

tankee:
In the future, never complain about the bug you found in the food served to you or the restaurant may charge you extra for the 'topping' πŸ˜‰

:sick:

Disgusting la you, bro! :politebleah:

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002991https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002991Tue, 14 May 2013 07:21:54 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Tue, 14 May 2013 07:00:52 GMT]]>

buds:
Tankee, the first two options on your poll are :sick:.

:? Why

πŸ˜‰

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002972https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002972Tue, 14 May 2013 07:00:52 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Tue, 14 May 2013 06:59:43 GMT]]>In the future, never complain about the bug you found in the food served to you or the restaurant may charge you extra for the 'topping' πŸ˜‰

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002967https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002967Tue, 14 May 2013 06:59:43 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Tue, 14 May 2013 02:28:47 GMT]]>Tankee, the first two options on your poll are :sick:.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002758https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002758Tue, 14 May 2013 02:28:47 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Tue, 14 May 2013 02:27:57 GMT]]>I πŸ™ this said \"future\" does not include me by then.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002756https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002756Tue, 14 May 2013 02:27:57 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Tue, 14 May 2013 01:52:04 GMT]]>Was about to respond to buds saying she is not that adventurous with food. Wanted to say that I am game to try most things at least once except for bugs and dogs/cats. Then I saw this.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002724https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002724Tue, 14 May 2013 01:52:04 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Tue, 14 May 2013 00:42:35 GMT]]>:sick:

But I guess for countries where the people, esp the children suffer from malnutrition, insects are really highly nutritous. And they can survive in all sorts of weather conditions, which makes them easy to breed in large numbers.

At the rate we are destroying the Earth, maybe our grandchildren would have to start eating insects because the earth would be too hot for other animals to survive in big numbers :sad:

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002675https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002675Tue, 14 May 2013 00:42:35 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Tue, 14 May 2013 00:36:17 GMT]]>

Jennifer:
I saw a programme filmed in Cambodia. The villagers collect red ants n use these in every kind of dishes they eat. Only 1 taste in all different dishes - sour. So boring.


I rather eat only vegs than to eat bugs.
Bugs are high in protein, so they are more a meat replacement than a veg replacement. I think I wouldn't mind eating bugs if they are 'disguised' initially - I'm not sure I can cope with the whole creature! Maybe after a while, I'll get used to the idea.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002670https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002670Tue, 14 May 2013 00:36:17 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Mon, 13 May 2013 14:43:28 GMT]]>

tankee:
i wonder whether insects are high in Saturated fats and cholesterol? :?

Insects got fats mei? I think they are only full of calcium, you know like the shell fish :rotflmao:

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002559https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002559Mon, 13 May 2013 14:43:28 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Mon, 13 May 2013 14:31:39 GMT]]>I saw a programme filmed in Cambodia. The villagers collect red ants n use these in every kind of dishes they eat. Only 1 taste in all different dishes - sour. So boring.


I rather eat only vegs than to eat bugs.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002542https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002542Mon, 13 May 2013 14:31:39 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Mon, 13 May 2013 14:31:25 GMT]]>i wonder whether insects are high in Saturated fats and cholesterol? :?

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002541https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002541Mon, 13 May 2013 14:31:25 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bugs are food of the future: UN agency on Mon, 13 May 2013 14:19:36 GMT]]>Wow! 不是吧?! :sick:

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002532https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1002532Mon, 13 May 2013 14:19:36 GMT