Singapore has taken a bold step and approved 16 species of insects as safe for human consumption.
Living things Pass The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) said edible insects include crickets, caterpillars, moth larvae and a type of honeybee. It said it made the decision simply because the insect industry is “in its infancy and insects are a new food in Singapore.”
The announcement comes as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) continues to promote eating insects as an environmentally friendly way to get dietary protein for both humans and livestock.
We’ve got all your questions answered as Singapore paves the way for a crooked, leggier and more sustainable dining experience.
What species are designated for human consumption?
Singapore has approved 16 insect species at different life stages. The adult insects are four cricket species, two grasshoppers, one locust and one honeybee species. The larvae are three mealworm species, one whitefly species, one giant beetle larva and two moth species. According to the guidelines, silk moths and silkworms (different life stages of the same species) can both be eaten.
“It’s really surprising how long the list of species is now accepted for human consumption,” says Skye Blackburn, an Australian entomologist and food scientist who advocates for insect eating and sells insect-based products. “It really shows that Singapore is a bit more open to edible insects than we thought.”
How about some sushi with silkworms?
Singapore restaurant chain House of Seafood is already preparing to serve 30 insect-based dishes, reports The Straits Times. ReportsThese include sushi with silkworms and crickets, salted egg crab with superworms, and “mint meatball mayhem,” meatballs topped with worms.
Among the insect products that Singapore authorities allow for importation are insect oils, fresh pasta containing insects as an ingredient, chocolate and other confectioneries containing up to 20% insect content, salted, brined, smoked and dried bee lava, marinated beetle larvae and silkworm pupae.
Mr Blackburn said one encouraging thing about Singapore’s list was that it included species that are not yet commercially farmed for food, such as the European honeybee and rhinoceros beetle larvae.
Where else would they eat insects?
Insects are eaten in 128 countries. study A study published in the journal Scientific Reports this year found that 2,205 fish species are eaten around the world, with most of these species found in Asian countries, followed by Mexico and African countries.
Hundreds of insect species are consumed in Thailand, India, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and China, while Brazil, Japan and Cameroon each eat more than 100 species of insects.
Singaporean chefs will be able to import many creative insect recipes from around the world. Insect dishes will be served fried, skewered, in noodles, margaritas, arancini, canned, confit etc. Insect products will be sold in restaurants, markets, supermarkets and vending machines around the world.
The EU is in the process of approving more insects as what it calls “novel food sources,” but has approved only four so far. Australia has so far approved only three species as “non-novel, non-traditional” food sources: one species of cricket and two species of mealworms.
Is it safe to eat bees?
Aren’t honeybees in danger of extinction? Essential for maintaining Earth’s basic life systemsMost of the bees consumed are stingless male bees that are often removed from hives for pest control, Blackburn said.
“The reason we remove drones from hives is because they have Varroa mites,” Blackburn says, “so drones are actually used as a food source because they’re a by-product of the hive.”
Female honeybees are also eaten in some African and Asian countries, but cooking them breaks down, or “denatures,” the venom, she said. Female bees can be ground up or fried and eaten.
Blackburn has tried drones and says they taste like “sweet butter.”
“It was very nice, although it didn’t feel like a beehive. [it had] It’s a really mild and sweet flavor.”
In Cambodia Bee pupae are cooked inside the hive As a popular street snack, especially the rich waffles and little choux pastry puffs.
Why does the UN want us to eat insects?
These are critical times and, climate-wise, insects are a much more sustainable source of protein than livestock.
Crickets have a high “conversion ratio,” meaning they are efficient at converting plant energy into protein, or in other words, getting what they eat into their bodies: “Crickets require one-sixth the amount of feed required by cows, one-quarter the amount required by sheep, and one-half the amount required by pigs or broilers to produce the same amount of protein.” According to the FAO.
They can also be raised indoors, using less space, water and producing fewer emissions. They can be kept in relatively small rooms in rural and urban areas, providing an income source for people with limited access to land or who lack the training required to keep livestock.
Are we already eating insects without even knowing it?
The SFA said companies must state on the packaging whether their products contain insects “to indicate the true nature of the product”.
But some of the products hitting store shelves are pretty inconspicuous. Singaporean company Ultimate Nutrition wants to sell a protein bar that looks just like any other, in orange and yellow packaging, but with crickets in it. “Enjoy classic nutty and gourmet flavors with a guilt-free twist!” its website says. To tellGround insect flour can be used to make protein-rich pastas, as well as biscuits and protein shake powders.
But if you’ve ever eaten food that’s been dyed red, you may have been exposed to carmine, a red dye made from the shells of the shellac beetle, which is “added to everything from yogurt and ice cream to fruit pies, soft drinks, cupcakes and doughnuts.” according to BBC.
Other ingredients include the candy’s shiny shell, which is made from resin secreted by lacquer bugs, and of course honey and bee pollen.
And if you eat animals, chances are they are eating insect protein. The FAO recommends the use of insects such as black soldier flies, house flies, mealworms, silkworms and grasshoppers as a supplementary food source for livestock, poultry and fish. Black soldier flies can reduce fertilizer pollution by up to 70%.
What’s the best way to convince people to eat insects?
Ms Blackburn says she encourages children to ask questions and teaches them about eating insects, and one of her most popular products is corn chips made from crickets, which are now sold in 1000 school canteens across Australia as a healthy snack.
“It’s fun too,” she says. “What kid doesn’t want to eat cricket chips?”
