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Insects and diet
Woven Network blog carries an article by Olena Kagui, that features Entoveganism. Promoted by Josh Rogan, this combines sustainability with the advantages of a vegetable-based diet, supplemented by insects and insect products.
His personal experience and opinion are consistent with Michael Pollan’s mantra: Eat food, not too much, mainly plants.
Alongside the popular press, scientific articles address aspects such as gut microbes and systemic inflammation (see below). Not everyone is keeping up to date with these developments, however -
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Arizona Senator proposed denying federal funding for research into insect production
Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) spoke in the Senate on 26 Jul 18 to object to US$ 1.3 million being spent by the Institute of Food and Agriculture to support cricket farming. He wished to amend House spending H.R. 6147 to prevent taxation being used to fund research into food derived from insects.
He objected to Bugeater Foods, Nebraska receiving $100,000 to identify the most edible insects, and All Things Bugs, Georgia receiving $1.3M for reducing the cost and improving the efficiency of farming crickets as food ingredients. He compared unfavourably cricket powder selling for $ 35 per lb with 100% ground beef costing $3.80 per lb. The record US meat mountain of 2.5 billion lb has persuaded Sen. Flake that no new source of protein is either needed or wanted. He didn’t specify either Acheta domesticus or Gryllodes sigillatus, preferring the more generic term ‘bugs’.
The North American Coalition for Insect Agriculture moved quickly to oppose this, and the amendment has been dropped. Campaigning will continues at the NACIA Eating Insects meeting in Athens, Georgia 13-15 August.
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Palm Weevil Larvae
Contrast the Senator's opinions with his countrywoman in Loveland, Colorado who has established Farms for Orphans. This works with the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, University of Kinshasa, and the Global Orphan Foundation to produce palm weevil farms in orphanages in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo to feed the children there.
The orphanages are surrounded by hardstanding; so there’s no space for grazing animals. A shipping container provided with the help of Bill and Melinda Gates foundation allows palm weevils to be raised on sugar cane. 10-12 grubs can meet a child's recommended daily nutritional needs.
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13-15 August 2018
Eating insects Athens 2018 (that’s Athens, Georgia)
The "Georgia Center", 1197 South Lumpkin Street, Athens, GA 30602-3603, USA
Woven members eligible for discount on registration
28 August 2018
Invertebrate based solutions at Aqua2018
Joint World and European Aqauculture Societies Conference in Montpellier, France
A matchmaking event for invertebrate-based solutions at the
29-31 August 2018
Ento ’18, The good, the bad, and the ugly. National Science Meeting of the Royal Entomological Society
Edge Hill University, Ormskirk
9-11 September 2018
Innovate 2018
Chateau Elan Winery & Resort , Braselton, Georgia, USA American Society of Animal Science, including:
Human response to animal-sourced foods
Innovative methods of cooking / preparing high quality animal sourced proteins (with: Edible insects as alternative sources of animal protein)
Future of animal sourced foods in the American diet.
26 September 2018 2050
China foodtech summit
PwC Shanghai Innovation Centre, China
Opportunities for food companies, investors, and startups in China.
• China’s prevalent food challenges: food safety, nutrition, and sustainable agriculture
• Intellectual property and regulatory considerations for novel ingredients in the Chinese market
• Pitches from food tech and CPG startups from China and abroad
• Networking with investors and companies promoting innovation in food in China
Accompanying events:
Tuesday September 25, 2018
China Beyond the Headlines: Digital Lifestyle Immersion with IDEO
Thursday September 27, 2018 Taste of China, an exclusive journey of flavors by Givaudan
10 Oct 2018, 13:30-22:00 CEST
Symposium: InsectSpace 2018
Wageningen University & Research, and FoodSpace Wageningen University & Research, Impulse building no. 115, 2 Stippeneng, 6708 PB Wageningen, Netherlands
€11.47-53.17
The symposium InsectSpace 2018 will focus on edible insects for human consumption: How can we overcome disgust and repulsion with insects? Researchers, food scientists, entrepreneurs and food designers will present interesting insights about why and how to use insects in our diet.
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Events
25 Aug – 8 September 2018
Big wasp survey 2018
University of Gloucestershire, University College London, Royal Entomological Society. Registration now open.
23 October 2018 3rd World Edible Insect Day 
Woven Network has a collection of recipes, details of chefs who cook with insects and insect products, links with suppliers who will deliver ingredients that are available to members, and can be released to applicants on application.
Are you planning something? Can you help? We hope that this year's Global Edible insects day will be a good opportunity for lots of events around the country. Woven can help to connect people. If you would like to organise something please let us know - what do you need? What are you planning? Who is your audience? If you have resources - products, videos, materials, brochures ... let us know.
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(Some links require copy and paste into a browser)
Stull VJ, Wamulume M, Mwalukanga MI, Banda A, Bergmans, RS, Bell MM. “We like insects here”: entomorphagy and society in a Zambian village. Agriculture and Human Values 3 Aug 2018 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10460-018-9878-0
In rural Zambia, edible insects are not valued equally, with Isoptera (termites) most favoured. Rather thank kinship, social values related to class, urbanism, gender, and age were more likely explanations for entomophagy perceptions. Mini livestock farming systems designed to maximise output, minimise labour, and highlight benefits are more likely to be accepted.
Stull VJ, Finer E, Bergmans RS, Febvre HP, Longhurst C, Manter, DK, Patz JA, Weir TL. Impact of edible cricket consumption on gut microbiota in healthy adults, a double-blind, randomised crossover trial. Scientific Reports 2018; 8(1) DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-29032-2
Edible insects are a nutritious, protein-rich, environmentally sustainable alternative to traditional livestock. The nutrient composition of several insects is characterised, but other effects on health remain uncertain. Rich in protein, crickets contain chitin and other fibres that may influence gut function. In this study, we studied consuming 25 grams/day whole cricket powder on gut microbiota composition, and assessed safety and tolerability. Twenty healthy adults participated in a six-week, double-blind, crossover dietary intervention. Participants were randomised into two groups and consumed either cricket-containing or control breakfast foods for 14 days, followed by a washout period and allocation to the opposite treatment. Blood and stool samples were collected at baseline and after each treatment period to assess liver function and microbiota changes. Results demonstrate eating crickets is tolerated and not toxic at the dose studied. Cricket powder supported growth of the probiotic bacterium, Bifidobacterium animalis, which increased 5.7 fold. Cricket consumption was also associated with reduced plasma TNF-α. These data suggest that eating crickets may improve gut health and reduce systemic inflammation.
Pali-Schöll I, Binder, R, Moens Y, Polesny F, Monsó S. Edible insects – defining knowledge gaps in biological and ethical considerations of entomophagy. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, DOI: 10.1080/10408398.2018.1468731
Insects farmed for food or feed require compliance with regulations for food safety, consumer information and animal protection. Insects, like any other animals, must not be reared or manipulated in a way that inflicts unnecessary pain, distress or harm. Research is required for species-specific welfare needs, health, farming systems and humane methods of killing. Recent results from neurophysiological, neuroanatomical and behavioural sciences prompt caution when denying consciousness and therefore the likelihood of presence of pain and suffering or something closely related to it to insects. From an animal protection point of view, these issues should be satisfyingly solved before establishing and proliferating intensive, factory farming husbandry systems for insects.
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