Would you eat insects?

[greenishfing]

This morning, while reading yesterday's newspaper, my husband came across an article about eating insects and one of the big supermarkets selling them. I then gave the idea a bit of thought. I'm sure while eating fruit and veg over the years I have inadvertently munched a few but the thought of deliberately buying them to eat......no. The smell of a freshly opened bag of mealworms (for the birds) is revolting.
At the same time I suppose the thought of a free crop from the allotment has some appeal for some people.
What are your thoughts? Will we find a use for pests?

[happyhumph]

Woodlice are crustaceans so could be a poor man's prawns?

[veggiechicken]

Humph, next time you're in St Davids pop into GrubKitchen and report back Grub Kitchen | Eat insects, feed the World.

[happyhumph]

We might take children for a day trip! Been meaning to try it for a while..

[mrbadexample]

Don't see what the issue is. Millions of people eat them all the time. Tasty, nutritious. Sign me up.

[Snoop Puss]

If people are hungry enough, they'll eat anything that isn't going to kill them. So yes, I'd eat insects if I had to.

But if we and the billions of other humans start eating wild insects, birds, small reptiles and mammals will go hungry and that will impact higher up the food chain. And doubtless there will be some impact from farming insects that hasn't yet been foreseen.

Edited to add: Wow! I've just looked at the prices of bugs at Bug Farm Foods. Pricey or what?! 150 pounds for a kilo of buffalo worms. 110 pounds for a kilo of powdered crickets. I'd have to be very hungry and very rich to buy those. I can buy me a heck of a lot of chicken or black-eyed beans for that!

[veggiechicken]

I know an old lady who swallowed a fly..................

[greenishfing]

If people are hungry enough, they'll eat anything that isn't going to kill them. So yes, I'd eat insects if I had to.

But if we and the billions of other humans start eating wild insects, birds, small reptiles and mammals will go hungry and that will impact higher up the food chain. And doubtless there will be some impact from farming insects that hasn't yet been foreseen.

Edited to add: Wow! I've just looked at the prices of bugs at Bug Farm Foods. Pricey or what?! 150 pounds for a kilo of buffalo worms. 110 pounds for a kilo of powdered crickets. I'd have to be very hungry and very rich to buy those. I can buy me a heck of a lot of chicken or black-eyed beans for that!

Do you think they would buy my aphids? Pick your own of course?

[lottie dolly]

NO,i do not like meat,plus think of the eco system,also if they were to be farmed,does not bare thinking about,yeuk,teuk,yeuk.

[Mr Bones]

Beetles taste like prawns without the fishy bit (don't ask..) or put the other way freshly cooked prawns taste like beetles

[ESBkevin]

I believe the theory is that insects can be farmed using far less resource than cattle. However we would need to have something like cattle to tread the worlds grasslands as that is a natural means of grazing and brief trampling to maintain the grasses. So we would either give up our natural grassland habitat, or replace one lot of CO2/methane producing animals with another non productive one.
I think if you were eating recognisable whole grasshoppers you might baulk at the idea, but if they were minced and processed it would be just another 'meat product' for protein. So if we process insects, how can we be sure the 'manufacturers' won't do anything to our food, and will processed insects be bad for you in the same way processed meat is!
Still over the years I've put enough crap in my face to suprise the doctors I'm still living.

[Nicos]

I know an old lady who swallowed a fly..................

You DO know that rary is going to pick you up on that?

[Nicos]

I think I'd prefer not to crunch my way through an obvious insect/grub, but I would happily sprinkle powdered insect protein into my food.

[muckdiva]

Woodlice are crustaceans so could be a poor man's prawns?

Hahaha, nearly spilled my tea!

But in answer to the question...not knowingly!

[Bren In Pots]

I suppose it's what you're used to eating, most of us already eat meat, fish and birds so adding insects isn't that much different.