Edible insects as a means to address global malnutrition and food insecurity issues

Abstract

Although unconventional in the USA, entomophagy, or the practice of consuming insects, can provide a nutritious relief to many malnourished people in developing countries. Edible insects are part of numerous traditional diets found in over 113 countries, including those in Asia, Africa, and South America. Currently, there are 2 billion people consuming over 2000 recorded edible insects. Many of these worldwide insects contain amounts of protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals comparable to commonly eaten livestock. With the popularity of crickets in both developing and developed countries and the nutrient density of locusts, these insects were of particular interest. Rice flour, made from a major food crop around the world, was used as an effective vehicle to deliver these insect ingredients. The use of inexpensive single-screw cold-forming extrusion technology, due to its capability of high production rate yet low capital and operating costs, was employed in making insect-fortified products. The feasibility of incorporating edible insect flours from cricket and locust in an extruded rice product has been demonstrated to be successful with acceptable shelf stability and sensory characteristics. Nutritionally, the insect rice products developed were energy dense (high fat content) and as an excellent source of protein. They also contained considerable amounts of dietary fibre and iron. Sensory evaluations involving 120 untrained panelists-suggested cricket formulations were well accepted compared with locust formulations. There is a positive outlook on the overall acceptance of entomphagy even in developed countries. As a staple food providing 20% of the world's dietary energy and consumed by over 1 billion people, rice is an ideal vehicle to deliver nutrients carried by edible insects. The incorporation of insect flours in processed foods such as extruded rice products can greatly promote the consumer acceptance by disguising the 'yuck' factor associated with intact insects.