The Next New Miracle Superfood: Insects, Scientists Say
Baku, July 12 (AZERTAC). Want to boost your energy with high-quality, low-fat protein? Look no further than bugs.
According to panel discussions held at the 2014 Institute of Food Technologies (IFT) meeting late last month in New Orleans, insects are the food of the future. Not only are they good for you, they`re a low-cost alternative to animal protein with far less impact on the environment.
And if this sounds ridiculously futuristic, think again; cricket-based protein powders are already hitting the market here in the U.S.
“Some insects are as much as 80 percent protein by weight and provide more essential amino acids than most animal proteins,” said IFT panelist Aaron Dossey. “They are also rich in nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids.” Insect protein is also easily digested. And we`re going to need new sources of protein, because as time goes on there`s just not going to be enough meat to go around.
These problems could be alleviated by cultivating a taste for bugs, according to Dossey. “Insects require less feed, less water, less land, and less energy to produce and their production generates substantially lower environmental pollutants, such as pesticides and greenhouse gases,” he says.
And he should know: Dossey owns All Things Bugs LLC, based in Athens, Georgia, which is marketing a high-protein cricket powder for use in baking and cooking. One of the recipes touted on the company`s website? Cricket-blueberry pancakes.
More than 1400 type of bugs are edible, say Dutch researchers at Wageningen University, who compiled a more than 50-page list for the 2014 International Conference on Insects to Feed the World held in May. Amongst them are grasshoppers, locusts, crickets, moths, beetles, flies, bees, ants, cicadas, katydids, weevils, stink bugs and cockroaches. Also on the list: worms and caterpillars.
And Salt Lake City-based Chapul Cricket Bars of Salt sells energy bars made from All Things Bugs` high-protein cricket powder. They come in flavors such as the Aztec bar, a coffee-dark chocolate-coffee concoction, the Chaco bar, a standard chocolate and peanut butter combo, and the Thai bar, which features ginger and coconut.
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