Special Collection: Insects as Food and Feed

The purpose of this special issue is twofold. First, it aims to bring attention to a novel agricultural sector that is gaining momentum globally: the use of insects as food and feed. We highlight outcomes from the Eating Insects Athens conference held in Athens, Georgia from 13 to 15 August 2018. Second, this special issue aims to celebrate the life of Dr. Marianne Clopton Shockley of the Department of Entomology, University of Georgia (UGA), whose life was tragically lost in the spring of 2019.

In August 2018, the North American Coalition for Insect Agriculture (NACIA) organized a 3-d conference, Eating Insects Athens, in Athens, GA. The conference built on the success of the 2016 event, Eating Insects Detroit, and highlighted progress in both research and industry linked to insect agriculture. NACIA was created as a platform to strengthen an industry currently in its infancy.

The black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens (L.), is economically important due to its use in waste management and as an alternative protein source for livestock, poultry, and aquaculture. While industry promotes mass production of the black soldier fly, little is known about the impact of larval competition on development time, resulting immature and adult weight, or adult longevity.

Some people have moral objections to insect consumption. After explaining the philosophical motivations for such objections, I discuss three of them, suggesting potential replies. The first is that insect consumption ignores the precautionary principle, which we can gloss here as “Don’t know, don’t farm.”

Although two billion people already eat insects in the world and the benefits of edible insects are well known, these ‘green’ sources of protein are neither treated as conventional food products nor widely incorporated into Western diets. Using a school-based investigation surveying 161 children, aged 6–15, and 114 of their parents in London, and an online consumer survey with mainly British and French consumers (N = 1,020), this research provides insights into the potential of the insect market in the West. 

Humans have practiced entomophagy for thousands of years; yet until recently, interest from Western countries has emerged toward using insects as alternative proteins to feed the growing world population. Research shows that western cultures are in favor of consuming familiar foods formulated with insect protein. This has led to the productions of insect-derived flours, primarily from crickets and mealworms, which are now available in North American and European markets. 

Edible insects offer environmental and nutritional benefits, as they are characteristically nutrient-dense, are efficient biotransformers of organic material, and emit fewer greenhouse gasses than traditional livestock. Cultivating Tenebrio molitor (yellow mealworm) as ‘minilivestock’ is one possible means of increasing access to insect protein for food insecure populations. Tenebrio molitor growth and nutrient content varies with diet and rearing conditions, but little is known about the precise impact of poor quality feedstocks, such as maize crop residue (stover).

Interest in the use of insects for animal feed applications is increasing due to the potential for more efficient production of protein and other nutrients compared to other more traditional sources. This review provides a brief overview of the potential of insects to provide efficient, sustainable nutrition for animal species, from commercially farmed animals, to pets and to exotic animals housed for conservation efforts.

Insects have great potential to serve as a sustainable food source owing to their notable nutritional value, high feed conversion rate, and low environmental footprint. The sharing of well-established recipes in cultures where insect consumption is normalized can facilitate new product development among cultures where consumption is resisted. 

Interest in edible insects has increased greatly since the 2013 report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization demonstrated that insects offer an appealing option for a more sustainable livestock alternative. However, overcoming the cultural bias against insect consumption is necessary in order to see widespread adoption. In order to overcome the bias, it is important to first understand it.

As the global population is expected to reach 9 billion people by 2050, food production must increase by 60% to meet demand. Increasing agricultural commodities to meet this demand for food products exacerbates several issues of human concern, such as over-fertilization and natural resource depletion. Further, changes in diets due to uncertainty in local crop availability change our food forecast.

Large-scale production of the black soldier fly [Hermetia illucens (L.) (Diptera: Stratiomyidae)] for use as aquaculture and poultry feed has developed into a global industry. Successful commercialization of the black soldier fly relies on optimizing the production of fecund adults. However, current mass-rearing protocols result in variable production of fertile eggs.