Should we eat bugs? - Emma Bryce

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What's tasty, abundant and high in protein? Bugs! Although less common outside the tropics, entomophagy, the practice of eating bugs, was once extremely widespread throughout cultures. You may feel icky about munching on insects, but they feed about 2 billion people each day (Mmm, fried tarantulas). They also hold promise for food security and the environment. Emma Bryce makes a compelling case for dining on bugs.

Lesson by Emma Bryce, animation by NEIGHBOR.

For centuries,

people have consumed bugs,

everything from beetles

to caterpillars,

locusts,

grasshoppers,

termites,

and dragonflies.

The practice even has a name,

entomophagy.

Early hunter-gatherers probably learned

from animals that foraged

for protein-rich insects

and followed suit.

As we evolved

and bugs became part of dietary tradition,

they fulfilled the role

of both staple food

and delicacy.

In ancient Greece,

cicadas were considered luxury snacks.

And even the Romans found beetle larvae

to be scrumptious.

Why have we lost our taste for bugs?

The reason for our rejection is historical

and the story probably begins

around 10,000 B.C. in the Fertile Crescent,

a place in the Middle East

that was a major birthplace of agriculture.

Back then, our once nomadic ancestors

began to settle in the Crescent.

And as they learned to farm crops

and domesticate animals there,

attitudes changed,

rippling outwards towards Europe

and the rest of the western world.

As farming took off,

people might have spurned bugs as mere pests

that destroyed their crops.

Populations grew

and the West became urbanized,

weakening connections with our foraging past.

People simply forgot their bug-rich history.

Today, for people not accustomed to entomophagy,

bugs are just an irritant.

They sting and bite

and infest our food.

We feel an "ick factor" associated with them

and are disgusted

by the prospect of cooking insects.

Almost 2,000 insect species are turned into food,

forming a big part of everyday diets

for two billion people around the world.

Countries in the tropics are the keenest consumers

because culturally it's acceptable.

Species in those regions are also large,

diverse,

and tend to congregate in groups or swarms

that make them easy to harvest.

Take Cambodia in southeast Asia

where huge tarantulas are gathered,

fried,

and sold in the marketplace.

In southern Africa,

the juicy mopane worm is a dietary staple,

simmered in a spicy sauce

or eaten dried and salted.

And in Mexico, chopped jumiles

are toasted with garlic, lemon, and salt.

Bugs can be eaten whole to make up a meal

or ground into flour, powder, and paste

to add to food.

But it's not all about taste.

They are also healthy.

In fact, scientists say entomophagy

could be a cost-effective solution

for developing countries that are food-insecure.

Insects can contain up to 80% protein,

the body's vital building blocks,

and are also high in energy-rich fat,

fiber,

and micronutrients like vitamins and minerals.

Did you know that most edible insects

contain the same amount

or even more mineral iron than beef,

making them a huge, untapped resource

when you consider that iron deficiency

is currently the most common nutritional problem

in the world?

The needle worm is another nutritious example.

The yellow beetle larvae are native to America

and easy to farm.

They have a high vitamin content,

loads of healthy minerals,

and can contain up to 50% protein,

almost as much as in an equivalent amount of beef.

To cook, simply saute in butter and salt

or roast and drizzle with chocolate

for a crunchy snack.

What you have to overcome in "ick factor",

you gain in nutrition

and taste.

Indeed, bugs can be delicious.

Needle worms taste like roasted nuts.

Locusts are similar to shrimp.

Crickets, some people say,

have an aroma of popcorn.

Farming insects for food

also has less environmental impact

than livestock farms do

because insects emit far less greenhouse gas

and use up less space, water, and food.

Socioeconomically, bug production

could up-lift people in developing countries

since insect farms can be small-scale,

highly productive,

and yet relatively inexpensive to keep.

Insects can also be turned

into more sustainable food for livestock

and can be reared on organic waste,

like vegetable peelings,

that might otherwise just end up rotting in landfills.

Feeling hungry yet?

Faced with a plate of fried crickets,

most people today would still recoil,

imagining all those legs and feelers

getting stuck between their teeth.

But think of a lobster.

It's pretty much just a giant insect

with legs and feelers galore

that was once regarded

as an inferior, repulsive food.

Now, lobster is a delicacy.

Can the same paradigm shift happen for bugs?

So, give it a try!

Pop that insect into your mouth

and savor the crunch.