is the human use of 
insects as food. Various insects have been eaten by humans from prehistoric times to the present day.  Human insect-eating is commonplace in most parts of the world and extremely prevalent in many regions of Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Oceania.  In developed western countries there has always been an aversion to eating bugs but this is slowly changing.  The rapidly emerging #entomophagy movement across the developed world is beginning to inform and educate the general public on the countless benefits of edible insects as a SUPERFOOD!

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations strongly encourages the consumption of edible insects. They contain high quality protein, vitamins and amino acids for humans. Insects also have a high food conversion rate, e.g. crickets need six times less feed than cattle, four times less than sheep, and twice less than pigs and broiler chickens to produce the same amount of protein. Insects emit far less greenhouse gases and ammonia than conventional livestock and can be grown on organic waste. Edible insects are an ideal source for conventional production  of protein (mini-livestock), either for direct human consumption, or indirectly in recomposed foods - think cricket nuggets or cricket hot dogs:)

entomophagy.org is a resource dedicated to education on the human and environmental advantages of adopting edible insects as a primary form of nutrition.  Here you will find a global collection of informative and relevant publications, articles, links, and videos across all aspects of the world of entomophagy.  If the idea of eating bugs is new to you, check out the excellent video bellow.  You can also visit ENTOMOPHAGY 101 for 10 essential articles covering the entire bug-eating spectrum.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) highlights why everyone should eat bugs:

  • They have a high feed-conversion efficiency (an animal’s capacity to convert feed mass into increased body mass, represented as kg of feed per kg of weight gain).
  • They can be reared on organic side streams, reducing environmental contamination, while adding value to waste.
  • They emit relatively few greenhouse gasses and relatively little ammonia.
  • They require significantly less water than cattle rearing.
  • They have few animal welfare issues, although the extent to which insects experience pain is largely unknown.
  • They pose a low risk of transmitting zoonotic infections.
Woman selling fried tarantula spiders in Cambodia

Green grasshopper with orange legs on green leaf

Fried crickets with lemongrass on plate

Info-graphic detailing benefits of human insect consumption