This essay was sent unsolicited to me, and while I consider the topic pointless for western cultures, it’s worth a read just to see how other parts of the world think – Anthony
Guest essay by Sameer Pokhrel Agriculture and Forestry University, Nepal
Where going vegan is suggested as one of the better alternatives to reduce GHGs emission, non vegans still can enjoy meat, blameless for the emission of GHGs – replacing insects for livestock in their diet.
Eating meat is vital to meet the nutritional requirement, on the other hand, nature has to tolerate high level of GHGs while rearing those animals; its catch 22. Nonetheless, insects based food recipe is a wise solution for this problem.
Insects as food
Image credit: SBS
Insects rank topmost species regarding abundance in the world where, some 2111 species of them are recorded to be edible. They are known for high protein and less fat diet and are rich in calories, thiamin, riboflavin, iron, minerals that makes them perfect substitute for conventional beef.
Moreover, insects have an extraordinary potential of food conversion ratio (mass of feed per mass of meat). Cricket, for instance, requires less than 2 kg of feed to produce 1 kg of meat and 80 % is edible where beef requires 8 kg of feed to produce same amount of meat and only 40% is edible.
Regarding sharply rising demand for meat, and insects as a sustainable meat source, UN estimates , by 2050, when the population of world is forecasted to reach 9 billion, meat shortage would be a reality – population depends upon insects to meet the void. Hence, it is likely that we will be consuming insects throughout the globe very sooner than we have anticipated.
Combat climate change
Vegans have been long advocating giving up meat to cut off global warming and save the planet. It holds true as 14.5 % of human produced global GHGs is contributed by livestock. It is fortunate that insects can substitute beef consumption at the same time drastically cut off global emission.
GHGs emitted by insects is very much less than those of conventional livestock. A study compared gases released by insects and livestock in weight to weight basis. The jaw dropping result shows insects emit 80 times less methane than cattle. Moreover, crickets produce 8-12 times less ammonia than pigs. It is not limited here; by the matter of fact only cockroach, termites and scarab beetles produce methane , most of the insects produce methane not at all.
Moreover, insects are far more efficient in utilizing the resources. It is estimated that to produce one kg of meat it requires 10 times more plant nutrients than to produce one kg of insect biomass. A study , for instance, found out production of 150 g grasshopper meat require very less amount of water, which in case of cattle, requires 3290 litres of water to produce same amount of beef. Insects are prolific breeders as well, have a tendency to grow very fast and can easily be adjusted within limited spaces.
Entomophagy (eating insects) is in fact an old tradition, about 80% of world’s nation are recorded to eat insects. Insects based recipe are favorite dishes in many part of the world, but most of the westerners still ‘yuck’ upon the idea of eating insects. However, with the demand of meat soaring up in a sky rocketing pace, entomophagy is simply inevitable. And again, idea of eating insects is commendable in the planet where resource conservation is quite an issue and global warming is an alarming problem.
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“They (bugs) are known for high protein and less fat diet and are rich in calories, thiamin, riboflavin, iron, minerals that makes them perfect substitute for conventional beef.
Perfect? I’m guessing Sameer has never even tasted tasted a prime grilled medium rare beef steak brushed with melted garlic butter!
Especially if it is Kobe beef!
I believe, thaey speak with forked tongue.
“beef requires 8 kg of feed to produce same amount of meat and only 40% is edible.”
That kg of feed might be correct per kg of beef, but the 40% part is BS. We digest red meat to essentially nothing, no leftovers. They want insects to look more efficient but all that chitin is certainly not digestible. Furthermore, roughage is an interesting problem. There is both good and bad roughage. Bad roughage exposed the lower gut to irritating chemical groups that can lead to problems over time. Good roughage does not do that.
Since birth rates are falling precipitately all over the world, just as soon as developing countries escape from dirt poverty; and the fact that there is no proof whatsoever that the miniscule warming since the Little Ice Age is anything other than natural, eating grubs to stem my “carbon footprint” is not happening. However, if all the virtue-signaling progs in the Deep Blue Circle-Jerk would like to try it, they can knock themselves out!
I usually eat a steak immediately after reading one of these stories, but not this evening.
This evening I am eating two steaks, and as many chicken wings and hot Italian sausages I can stuff into my belly.
BTW…I have lost about thirty five pounds and counting by cutting out carbs to a large extent and eating nuts, fruits, meats, and salads with olive oil and vinegar.
About a pound a week, steady.
After ten more, I will start strength training to avoid losing any muscle mass.
I vote we let the cows into the corn.
@Menicholas, no, thanks. Grain-fed beef, or even just grain-finished beef, has a poor nutritional profile. Grass-fed and -finished all the way! Better flavor too.
Makes you wanna rush out to get your own “grub steak”…
Is it really that different than eating shrimp? If it’s deep fried or sauteed and well seasoned by a chef who knows what they heck they are doing.
If it tastes good, I’ll try it.
Tough to drive them cross country to the slaughter houses though as the grubs can not travel very far in a day so it might take several years to reach the railhead in Abilene.
Then of course you need to be careful of Grub Rustlers
http://s30.postimg.org/lw4u7hszl/buggalos.png
i don’t know what beetles those particular grubs are but some of that kind take 2 years to grow.
they may not be the sort of thing that works out for farming
So much meat is wasted in the name of trade, more again gets chucked out. Gluttony too, you dont need red meat every day, twice a week is loads, truth be told meat shortages are related to cash flow more than any other factor in almost any country
Truth be told, I don’t need to eat bloated, turgid grubs. Ever.
No one “needs” to eat anything in particular.
Humans are omnivores, and can live for long periods of time…very long periods…on nearly anything.
It is so very kind of you to decide what people ‘need’ to eat, and then decide how much for them.
If insects are so bloody great, why did we ever bother with raising animals to begin with?
Easier to round up on the prairie.
We already eat crustaceans. They differ from insects mostly in size and minor details like number of legs and crustaceans that are popular for Westerners to eat being aquatic.
What you mean, we?
: > )
Bon Appétit!
I love the tomalley!
As in Louisiana, make sure to suck the head; though they mean it in reference to crawfish and shrimp.
I’m with Donald for the balanced C’s diet: Green Lobster- $40.00 ; Nice Chablis- $40.00. Perfectly balanced. Simply the best way to pass an evening.
Sorry, lobsters are bottom feeders. And what is on the bottom? Whale shit. Mmmmmmmmm!
And your cows eat plants that grow out of worm poop.
Another armchair philosopher farmer announcing their knowledge deficiencies.
Just where on Earth is life not based on eating ex-life? Even when lions or shrews for that matter wolf down chunks of meat torn off living creatures, it is still previously alive tissue consumed.
@Tom in Florida: Grew up on a farm shoveling lots of it. Sometimes never even washed my hands or cleaned my nails. As you can imagine, its hard to dissuade a rural from a lobster meal. Apparently, that’s likely why I never had asthma. Anyway, to make you feel a bit less squeamish about the deal, I just finished cooking it. Guess I’ve turned into a had wringing urbanite these days. Oh well.. 🙂
Crabs are bottom feeders, too. I’ve seen where they dug holes into where saltwater fishermen had buried their poop in the dunes. You could tell from the toilet paper strewn outside the holes
And bugs eat rotting animal flesh, rotting vegitation and crap
T O M
Sorry.
Chablis @ $40
I pay about $3 for Vin de Pays – 1.5 litres.
And it is drinkable.
Lobster, not so keen.
Possibly $40 is fine. You seem happy – so magic.
But you are being ripped off bigtime at $40 a bottle; probably just 0.75 litre, too.
Wow.
Auto
@auto: The $40 Balanced wine/food portfolio was in worthless Canadian Dollars, so I slept well. Since I don’t have much more time for walkabouts, I’m doing my best to get rid of it all. Unfortunately, Country Wine gives me a headache, but when I was younger, it was all OK. An evening without a headache: $Priceless.
Taste. Shrimp and lobster taste good. Their meat also has a pleasing texture. I’ve never read those words in any review of any insect based food, Ever. I had my DNA analyzed. No lemur present, so I’m long past considering insects as food unless starvation is the only choice. And I’ll consume grilled Vegan before I’ll fry up some crickets or grasshoppers.
According to the FDA we eat a lot of bugs and shit every meal wether it’s fresh or processed foods. Yum.
Don’t be so quick to condemn. Crickets and grasshoppers toast real well over a small fire; tasty too.
But tasty enough on a list that includes beef or lobster?
Hell no.
“According to the FDA we eat a lot of’…”
Again with the “we”?
I examine my foods before preparing them.
BTW, anyone who eats preprocessed foods deserves whatever they toss in while no one is looking.
I used to work in a restaurant, and I can tell you…the more you eat out, the more saliva and throat mucus you are consuming…I sh!t you not.
If you use commercial dried Italian noodles for your pasta, chances are good you’ve consumed insects. Actually the same goes for breakfast cereal or legumes. I’ve opened some that got weevils or some other bug when I failed to use the package up right awayーjust long enough for the bugs to hatch and grow.
cricket and grasshoppers are like a mouthful of little sticks.
most unpleasant – keratin does not melt in your mouth.
“We already eat crustaceans”
We?
Not this kid.
No mollusks, not much fish, and zero aquatic mandibulates for me…ever!
I knew when I was five not to eat that garbage.
Ditto for fungi and spoiled milk products of any description.
That is the great thing about America….WE have a choice !
Some choice Butch.
When business sent us on international meetings, it was always a major burden to most of the Americans. American eaters who did not take well to unfamiliar to American, foods.
It was a major effort to get one coworker to sample fresh made coffee and croissants in Belgium. He embarrassed me by trying to scoop out the froth on top of his coffee, though when he ordered three napoleons I did laugh.
While the food stupid took cabs seeking some MickeyDs version of food, several of us would wander down to the town market.
At the charcuterie order some summer sausage, duck Pâté, rabbit terrine, various confits.
Wander over to the fromage shop and order cheeses I either couldn’t afford or just never see in America.
Over to the fresh vegetables, with luck picking up some fresh figs and terrific greens.
Stop at the wine store and pick up a couple bottles of excellent wine, then pick up a loaf of bread on my way back to the hotel.
I ate royally while avoiding the high priced dinners. Buying whatever regional specialties at reasonable costs, wherever one was very easy. When in doubt, watch where the locals go to eat.
Fish and chips, Belgium fries, French salads with foie gras, Belgium mussels in white wine, etc. etc.
One meeting at the Orly airport, my team members arrived back late carrying McD bags. Another coworker of mine who loved regional foods started teasing them about eating burgers made from chevaux (horse). Several did go pale and leave their burgers till last.
So much for the food deluded growing up on over salted hotdogs, cheese strings and fish sticks
They have far greater choices over in most foreign countries, only food terrified are unable to eat “new to them” choices.
One trick in Loiusiana was to invite the Yankees to boils and pot lucks. At a boil, the basic foods, i.e. shrimp, crabs, crawfish, corn, andouille and potatoes are cooked in a pot with a decent amount of seasoning.
Newspaper is spread over the tables, the center strainer is pulled from the boil dumping the food down the center of the tables.
A paper plate, a paper towel and hands are all that is needed along with whatever cold drinks are available.
On the side, head cheese, summer sausage, boudin, red beans and sometimes navy beans are usually available.
As soon as a yankee picks up a crustacean or goes near the head cheese or boudin, Southern eyes watch to see the ‘newcomer’s reaction.
Comments along the lines of, “I thought bugs are illegal” or “disgusting” mark people blind to local cultures, customs, foods and habits.
Such people are to be pitied.
Better that we eat them than they eat us. 😎
lol
They are biding their time…we all end up bug food eventually.
..And that means eventually we become “bug shit”, which we eat unknowingly, in cereal…?
yeah…like Nepal has really got to worry about their GHG’s
Sameer is trying to get his foot in the door………..
Grub-kabobs… Yummy! Anyone who wants my share is welcome to them.
School meals were commonly known as grub. Yuck.
Not sure if eating insects will curb climate change but it would sure as hell curb my appetite.
yep..gotta few snarky people who yammer on about “humans ruining planet..thankful cockroaches will take over” <<woman actually said this to me after i was happy over Paris withdrawal by Trump!! I think once these whiners eliminate themselves via birth control in 2 generations (who needs privileged white people wracked with racist guilt anyway?) . They COULD assist even faster now to depopulate earth of themselves by choosing cricket protein toast, and fancy grilled grubs with soy butter. yum. and what happened to those chocolate covered insects so popular in the 80s? All insect all the time diet< sure to be popular soon with these folks.
Pig eat insect. Me eat pig. Simples!
Plus, It could be possible to utilize Pig Organs as Human Transplant replacements. They are about the same size as ours. All you need to do is a blood transfusion with a newborn and VIOLA, they won’t reject the pigs organs because their bodies learned that Pig tissue was their tissue.
Wouldn’t want to try that with a Cricket Heart or a Grub Liver
It is a fact that every sip of water you consume contains molecules that were once urinated by nearly every human being who has ever lived on the Earth.
Including your own.
Once those grubs taste like chicken and don’t squirm when crunched, then maybe I’ll try one…
A stupid idea in an ecological sense, as is veganism. Increasing populations to the point where “food efficiency” is a major concern leaves no room to temporarily use what was animal feed as human feed in case of a temporary food shortage.
A meat animal (cow, pig, chicken, grub, whatever) is basically a device for converting vegetable matter to protein. Is it not beyond our knowledge and skills to short-circuit this process and do it under controlled conditions, starting from stem cells or something of this nature, without having all the intermediate bones and skin and viscera and so forth? I would envision something like a reaction vessel in which starches and sugars are fed in at one end and a reasonable facsimile of bovine muscle tissue comes out at the other end. This is something I have come across in science fiction, but does anyone know if any serious research has been done on its feasibility?
I often read in Sci FI of vat grown this or that, so yep, if we are traveling in space or to a no-grow planet transporting cow eggs and other creatures via egg won’t work due to radiation to cellular structure over time. so getting a 3 legged insane chicken to thrive on Jupiter won’t work..it has to be some high density protein..but edible amino acids can be formulated, and is done NOW, for kidney patients who can’t eat meat. To expand on this the “vat” process may soon be all nutrition in a pill form anyway.
The process of EATING in the future will be restricted anyway…just like the gastric bypass surgery reduces the heathly stomach by 90%… we are ready finding a way to make shorter kids (soy-rice milk to the rescue as in TODAY’s news) so we are part way there to F**ing up our survival anyway.
Yes. It is called McDonald’s.
There are 3D printers doing this now and are being improved constantly. You just have to have the right combination of what goes in to get what comes out. They are making artificial skin for burn victim’s and even some organ replacements.
http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-23576143
Roger Graves see about link.
“Is it not beyond our knowledge and skills to short-circuit this process and do it under controlled conditions…”
Have at it.
Bon appetit.
Leaves more steaks for me!
Man, where have ye been? It’s not science fiction any more. Search on “Cultured meat”
http://www.new-harvest.org/faq/
http://www.futurefood.org/in-vitro-meat/index_en.php
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/test-tube-burger-lab-culture/
Re; lab grown meat: It’s Wikipedia but probaly has some accurate information.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultured_meat.
At today’s price of a god rib-eye steak, I’d certainly be happy to give lab grown a try.
I think when it comes to ecological frugality it’s important to follow Hollywood’s lead. IOW, let them go first.
Remember to market this during election pitches.
Will obama, gore, decaprio, and the other alarmist elite step up to the plate on this?
Well, they might take a LImo to a Drive-thru!
/grin
And the biggest bug we get in the UK is a slug.
Oh effing yummy!
Slugs are crustaceans, not insects.
Molluscs, I mean. Woops.
Still a bug to me 🙂
I can just see the ad: “This bug’s for you”.
Or perhaps the “Less filling ……. tastes great” debate.
Learn more about Kentucky fried cricket.
Sigh. This again. As an entomologist this frustrates me no end. First, I remain unconvinced that we’re actively destroying the planet with GHG’s. If you want to talk about pollution or overpopulation, I believe there’s a leg to stand on there. Second, no one hyping this nonsense understands what they’re talking about with respect to what we’re feeding cattle in the first place.
“Feed” as so many bandy it about is actually grain in most instances. Depending on where you are that may be wheat, corn or other cereal grains. Grains are graded once they are harvested according to quality. That too will vary by country but all countries will call it something like #1, #2, #3, feed. That is in order of decreasing qualities which means that the animals are getting the lowest quality of grain that is not suitable for end use consumption by people. So the calculations that are made about X gallons of water to produce a pound of beef are at best disingenuous to start with. Much of that water consumption actually goes into the production of the feed for the animal. Without an avenue to move low quality grains (i.e. feed) what we then have is a system that becomes much more wasteful. Y’see, no farmer growing grain for the sake of growing grain (I’m excluding those that raise livestock as they may well grow grain specifically as feed) sets out to grow feed. Were they doing that the return would be too low to return sufficient net income to continue running the farm. So farmers set out to grow the top grade of grain, whatever type it may be, simply because it will return the best and put more money in their coffers so they can upgrade equipment, feed their family, pay down the mortgage, etc. To get that top grade they need some luck from the weather and the environment (no disease, insects, etc.) and in most instances a fair number of inputs (fertilizers, micronutrients, pesticides, etc.).
So I don’t think any of these folks are actually addressing the reality of the equation adequately. Basically it’s the usual study that lies by omission of certain details that are verboten to discuss. People don’t eat “feed” grade grains? Shh!
aren’t grass fed beef cattle better off WITHOUT the crappy grains they were never meant to eat..ie corn/soy waste? I know they are finished with grains to add weight to market..but isn’t the complaint that they take up too much space in grazing? Isn’t the high grain feeding a recent process due tot eh cost of natural grazing? just asking not judging anything.
“Corn fed” beef was a marketing phrase invented to describe range beef fattened before slaughter on a diet of corn and corn wastes. The entire corn stalk, as many grass related plants, is wonderful food for cattle.
Overlooked in the whole obsessive urban cattle ignorance is that the vast majority of cattle is raised on grass.
Cattle graze on fresh grass during the warmer season and either dig out their own winter fallen grass or are fed harvested dried grasses and legumes; e.g. timothy, alfalfa, meadow grass, rye, etc.
Yes, there are stockyards where the owners purchase grass fed cattle that can benefit from richer foods.
The offset is where and when profit can be had by feeding richer foods, e.g. corn, for a brief period of time. Too long in a stockyard eliminates any chance of a profit for the stockyard owners.
The whole “grain fed” myth is a marketing gimmick and amounts to a small portion of weight gain. Can said fattening improve the flavor of lower grade meat?
Yes. But it is unlikely to improve the higher quality meat grades.
Personally, I’d much rather the animal is naturally fattened than to have commercial fats added after the animal’s slaughtering.
Meanwhile, large segments of the market are fed plain ordinary grass fed cattle; without false imprimaturs applied by marketing departments to sway the gullible.
One can drive all around America’s East, South and much of the West without seeing a real stockyard. Yet, one can easily spot herds upon herds of cattle, turning various grasses into nutritious meat.
When I order a section of a steer from our local butcher, a farmer; the only grain fed to the steer is a small supplement to normal stored fodder while the critter awaits slaughter.
PC, it is more a matter that grass-fed beef tends to be tough–the old Biblical phrase of “stalled ox” reflects the goal of finishing beef cattle for tenderness.
There are lots of crops raised for livestock exclusively. Alfalfa, corn, Johnson Grass, milo, Sudan Grass. We use the seeds from cotton. Almond husks and low grade molasses that is skimmed off during production. The Yellow Berry Wheat is used as feed. The grains to make Beer and other spirit’s are used as feed. Food that doesn’t meet criteria for human commerce is used as feed or made into compost. There is no shortage of “feed” to feed livestock. So this article is very wrong in its objective.
Considering that the major food related health problem in many places is obesity, I think it is for sure that the people advocating this have no idea what the hell is what in regard to food production.
My best estimate is that they know about as much about food as “climate scientists” do about the atmosphere.
That’s assuming all meat is grain fed/lot fed/grain fattened. Those of with a functioning palate know that grass-fed and finished is far superior in taste, texture, appearance. The statistics quoted for poundage ingested and amount of water required are most likely based on grain/lot fed, not grass-fed. But the arguments of the CO2-bad/humans-bad/non-vegans-bad are always based on the worst possible scenarios and statistics they can get their grubby (pun intended) hands on.
Besides, if humans eat all the grubs, won’t that interfere with the natural cycles of life, pollination, natural breakdown and recycling of fallen vegetation etc? Naughty grub-eating vegans, destroying the planet like that.
Alternatively we could bring refrigeration to the third world so that less food spoils before it is eaten, and prepare less food in the west so that it is not thrown in the trash. Approximately 50% of current food production actually goes to waste. If all we did was throw less in the trash we could feed ~15B people with today’s agriculture.
[14.5 % of human produced global GHGs is contributed by livestock]
That may or may not be true, but what is true is that all the human caused CO2 contributed yearly is less than 5% of what is produced naturally.
The significant thing about that is the WHOLE Human-caused global warming hypotheses MUST BE laid to just the 4-5% that is human produced. That other 95+% has been there for millennia. So again 1/20th of the annual CO2 MUST BE responsible for ALL the human caused global warming. That is 20 PPM CO2. Does ANYONE (else) see a problem with that?
John,
Wrong reasoning: some 6% nowadays of the inputs is human made, the rest is natural. But a balance has two sides: some 0% of the outputs is man-made and 3% (as mass, not the original molecules) remains in the atmosphere. Thus humans are fully responsible for near all the increase in the atmosphere… Only about 10 ppmv of the 110 ppmv increase comes from higher ocean temperatures…
To be clear:
0% of the outputs is man-made, as there are more slash and burn land use changes than new plantations. But about 3% of the outputs can be assumed man-made as the natural sinks expand by the increasing CO2 level in the atmosphere. If the latter is mostly man-made, then most of the extra sink rate is man-made…
This should all be standard fare at the U.N. Main Cafeteria, as well as the Delegates Dining Room. FYI, for an outsider to eat in the Delegates Dining Room plan on spending about $150 to $180 per head.
For those not so inclined I’ve had a nice pork shoulder in my smoker since 9:30, using apple wood. Plan on wrapping it up about 7:00. All are welcome.
Another mouth watering comment.
Hmmm, I wonder if my chicken is thawed, yet?
When somebody figures out how to make bacon grow on trees then I will become a vegan.
An outdoor humorist in my neck of the woods named Pat McManus wrote that he was out ice-fishing with the old woodsman ‘Rancid Crabtree’ who told him that a good way to warm up bait maggots was to stick a pinch of them in your lower lip. Pat told him it was a good thing to know and that he would have to try it some time when the need arose. And after thirty-years and more, the need had not yet arisen, but it was a good thing to know anyhow.
Is it true that Rancid Crabtree is a cousin of Red Green?
Another international busybody, “Sameer Pokhrel Agriculture and Forestry University, Nepal”, deciding that his/her personal cultural assumptions are what everyone should be measured by.
The links provided by Sameer Pokhrel, fail to reach any appreciable research. Most reach similar opinion pieces with odd comparisons.
e.g. amount of protein efficiency crickets produce versus cattle; is a gross assumption. Where cattle endure winter temperatures quite well without constant management, there is zero comparison regarding facilities, effort required and heat supply to keep similar weights of crickets alive all winter.
Nor is there any consideration regarding commercial insect enterprise failures keeping insects contained. We still get such joy from gypsy moth caterpillars.
What the article above amounts to is people, Sameer Pokhrel in this instance, essentially dictates to others what other people life’s choices are.
Basically another supercilious government idiot boasting of their personal moral superiority to a world outside the government idiot’s experience.
Worst of all, since so many cultures do not embrace general insect consumption, the “choice” becomes government fiat forcing a person’s food choices and sources.
Sameer Pokhrel should journey to Mongolia and inform their government and people that meat must be replaced by insects.
Having raised crickets a time or two, I can vouch for cricket food efficiency. Raising crickets for fish bait or bird feed did not once cause me to think, “Yum cricket for dinner”.
With crickets in hand, chicks grow faster, fish are easier to catch, dinner is in view and it is not cricket!
Personally, I think lobsters, shrimp, crustaceans, arthropods, molluscs, even krill are delicious. Some pompous Nepal twit pushing his favorite insects as preferred fake climate solutions is bizarre.
Let Sameer compare oyster protein conversion efficiencies instead.
Plus, one has to wonder at all this absurd moral outrage over eating livestock.
Nothing lives on Earth that does not ingest the same basic components of life, with the vast majority of those components taken from other life; whether insect, plant or animal.
Vegans are irrational; especially “organic” obsessed vegans.
It may be a personal choice to focus on exclusive food groups, it is absurd to waste so much time and effort excluding simple common foods.
While irritating and inconveniencing every person around them.
Very much reminding us of toddlers that did not mature, demanding attention for attention’s sake.
A wonderful job Anthony, allowing a climate activist or dependent thereof opportunity to post an article for discussion!
A shame though, that Sameer Pokhrel wastes such a valuable opportunity preaching cultural blindness and beliefs while singing bogus climate advocacy as their rationale. Supercilious condescension without regard for other people’s culture, lives, opportunity and situations.
Earth went through a period that insects were as big as livestock. 12 to 20 feet long centipedes if I remember it right…ect.
Put your hand up for the yeast.
Go long on Marmite!
Vegemite, please… not that watered down Marmite stuff 🙂
“Vegemite is perfect. Marmite tastes like someone tried to copy Vegemite and failed miserably.
Two different products.
I would not be surprised to see eating bugs catch on here sooner than we think. If it is rolled out right. Someone will figure out a way to prepare and present them in a way to remove the gross factor. The French consider snails a delicacy. Snails are just upscale slugs and leeches as far as I’m concerned.
It’s about getting the psychology right and the presentation. Do not underestimate people who need to believe in something higher than themselves to give their life meaning, but have abandoned traditional religions. Convincing themselves they are saving the world by eating bugs will appeal to a lot of left wingers. Then you have to position them as a delicacy the way the French consider snails a delicacy. They also have to be prepared in a way that removes the “ick” factor. Make them available in high end restaurants. That’s another part of the psychology. People naturally want to aspire to be affluent or more upscale than they are. Then get a few celebrities to endorse eating the bugs.
I’m not saying there will be a McBug’s fast food on every corner, but I can imagine a niche market of “early adopters” emerging under the right conditions. Left wingers like change. They also like thinking of themselves as do-gooders who are willing to challenge and upset existing societal norms. It’s not as crazy as it sounds.
I just remembered a story I read about lobsters. I don’t know if it is true or a mythical old wive’s tale, but supposedly when the first European settlers arrived lobsters were extraordinarily plentiful.
Very easy to catch in huge numbers. But Europeans considered them “cockroaches of the sea” and only used them for fish bait, fertilizer and even as fill to fill in holes. They didn’t eat them. Over time, because they were so plentiful and cheap, they began feeding them to slaves and prisoners. No free man from a good family would eat lobster.
I’m not sure when it all changed and lobster became a rich man’s delicacy. It can happen to bugs.
Evolution failed to provide me with the teeth of an insectivore.
Save the planet eat each other. Everyone wins
I wonder if those bugs go good with crackers? Whats next for dinner for those folks? Gheeze!
There’s a reason why meat eaters prefer cattle or pigs over insects. Figure it out.
Otherwise, this would not be news.
The headline should read, To hell with taste, texture and appeal, just go for the protein!
In a related story, last night I chased down a large roach that had crept into the eating-utensil drawer from the outside heat, using a spatula to try to corral it, brush it out of the drawer onto the floor so that I could dispense with it. … ended up removing the whole drawer, unloading it in the floor, frantically chasing the poor creature across the room, until I cornered and squashed it. The dog almost ate it. I called him off, grabbed the corpse, and trashed it.
Now I feel guilty for having wasted a low-fat, high-protein, nutrient-dense, red-meat alternative.
Have a beer and some summer sausage. You’ll get over it!
Sorry all you insect lovers, I am physically sick reading what you have to say and imagining eating insects. I will stick with our emissions emitting meat producers thank you very much. I can’t stand the sight of insects much less even consider eating one. Go for it – all the more meat for us non-insect lovers.
Check THESE out, Edith:
http://time.com/3830167/eating-bugs-insects-recipes/
My favorite is “Critter Fritters” — NOT the dish, but the name.
Are insects Kosher? — only the locust, I’m afraid, and so this knocks out a whole mass of potential consumers, and, thus, the argument could be made that Jews cause climate change. Wow, another new grant idea ! Thanks a million, WUWT !
I believe I’ll stick with California’s delta smelt, condors, baby seals, polar bears, koalas and Heredia robber frog legs!
…”And again, idea of eating insects is commendable in the planet where resource conservation is quite an issue and global warming is an alarming problem.”
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Someone’s way behind the curve, She’s already got anteaters out there.
Patience.
Do they have any idea how many mosquitos it takes to replace a Big Mac and large fries?
Not sure but those ‘Black Flag’ bug zapper tennis rackets really fries ’em! Flies too. You don’t even have to swat ’em, just cover ’em up and they do all the work. But .22 rimfire birdshot is best for carpenter bees / wood borers. Fried and crunchy might be the ticket! Heavy on the salt.
I’m gonna gross out everyone. My wife was born in China a few years after Mao took control and was there during the Great ChinesvFamine. She told me she remembers the “maid” going outside after every rain to gather up crickets to then be stir fried and eaten. She tells me that some people who were desperate would save the placenta after a woman gave birth, cook it and eat it.
So, ….”But mom, I don’t want to eat my yucky Broccoli”, will now become “but mom, I don’t want to eat my crunchy roasted cock roaches” ?……D’OH !
My kids do not like pumpkin, butternut squash and all the similar veg served up like my good wife does in segments. She likes it, her mum likes it, everyone else, no! BLECH! However, kids being kids and “not liking” veggies, every “spagbol” i make has two carrots and a head of broccoli shredded in to it. Never noticed! I mash up pumpkin, butternut squash and all the similar veg, with butter and salt and pepper, the kids eat it up like no tomorrow.
Gourmet Gore
“insects based food recipe is a wise solution”
Ummmmm – NO.
As the top Image from Anthony shows, a shish kabob of big land insects (larvae) today does not look … inviting … for those of … Western … diets … shall we say.
But they could be processed into other forms, like Burger Patties, with added coloring to please the eyes and aroma to please the nose. Much like what is done to “Chicken” at Pepperidge Farm making such exquisitely sweet and scrumptious cookies from dead chickens (oh and a few 10s of dead workers who fall into the vats each year … )!
Bon Appetit 🙂
Yes, and pastified maggots make a wonderful substitute for butter on your morning toast.
Have you ever been asked to kiss someone who just ate maggot paste?
I think I know what they have in mind…eat bugs…the new chick repellent.
Works better than a titanium chastity belt.
Balut is still the king of opposite sex repellent.
I say to all those who donate to climate alarmist causes, ” Put your mouth where your money is.”
Since eating bugs is a repulsive idea to most Westerners, the way to do it is to force the critters down our throats by mandating that a certain growing percentage by weight, starting with say 1% and increasing gradually to 10% of all packaged foods have powdered bugs added. Since that worked so well with ethanol.
Soylent green anyone?
That would be more unpopular, by an order of maggotude.
not used to eat insects.
If we cut down on our grazing herds, what will happen to all that grass they won’t be around to eat?
It will die & rot down, or be eaten by termites, releasing all the CO2it has absorbed in growing.
Of course there is noting wrong, & a whole lot right to having more CO2 in the atmosphere, but reducing grazing herds will make absolutely no difference to the CO2 level.
When it comes to animal protein on my menu, “It’s not a bug — it’s a creature”.