Insects are a culinary delicacy around the world, but will we bite?
By: Judi Stuart
By: Judi Stuart
Port Discover: Visitor Services Manager
You will not believe this; I didn’t. On Amazon, you can find new mealtime delights
like Fluker’s Gourmet Canned Crickets, Ultimate Insect and Bug Candy, Larvets
(BBQ), Edible Pupae, and Crickettes in sour cream and onion and bacon and
cheese flavors. They can be delivered
right to your doorstep for your pleasure.
Often, when I am enjoying a dinner
of shrimp which is one of my favorite foods, Hubby says, “You know that you’re
eating bugs.” Of course, he’s kidding, and he knows better, but they do
resemble bugs so I always wonder a little.
Some people even refer to them as the “cockroaches of the sea.”
People of western European decent
who now inhabit places all over the earth are generally not too keen on eating
bugs. In Asia, China, Africa, South
America, and many other areas, insects are a daily part of the diet and are
often considered a delicacy. Two billion
people consume insects as part of their diets.
Early Europeans were farmers who
quickly recognized that insects were fierce enemies of the crops they tried to
raise. Killing the creatures was their
goal, not eating them. Our innate belief
is that we should not eat anything that our mothers did not feed us. To go against that belief is a giant leap for
most people.
Entomophagy is the practice of
eating bugs for their nutritional value.
Insects are a readily available, natural source of carbohydrates,
protein, fats, minerals, omega-3s, and vitamins. As the world population approaches eight
billion people, scientists say that there will be little choice but to use
insects to stop starvation.
The United Nations is
promoting a campaign to make this cultural shift happen. The International
Society of Sports Nutrition is enthusiastic about the use of insect protein
products to enrich the food of athletes.
Bodybuilders are often on the leading edge of progressive nutritional
trends, and if people see them consuming insect protein supplements, the tide
might turn.
One way to assist people in rising above the disgust factor is
to make them believe that the food has a high status by labeling it a delicacy
and charging more for it. Lobster was
once plentiful along the eastern coast of the U.S. and Canada, but it was
considered a poor man’s food. Today
lobsters are the most expensive item on the menu.
Pound for pound insects have a greater concentration of life
sustaining protein and other nutrients than chicken, pork, or beef. Insects also contain less saturated fat and
their production is more environmentally friendly than other meats.
What if you are stuck on an island and the only food includes
bugs? Which ones would you choose? It is best to avoid the brightly colored
ones, but there will be plenty to select from since there are fifteen orders of
edible insects. They include lice,
grasshoppers, crickets, cicadas, bees, ants, flies, mosquitoes, dragonflies,
and termites.
Get your frying pan out and give them a try!
(Source: www.theblaze.com)
