Bug burgers, cricket chips, beetle beer: edible insect entrepreneurs look to break into mainstream food industry
- Insects are increasingly seen as a viable food source, with experts saying they’re rich in protein, yet can be raised much more sustainably than beef or pork
- Two billion people in 130 countries eat bugs regularly, and new investors in the growing market include Hollywood star Robert Downey Jnr
Tiziana Di Costanzo makes pizza dough from scratch, mixing together flour, yeast, a pinch of salt, a dash of olive oil and something a bit more unusual – ground acheta domesticus, better known as cricket powder.
Di Costanzo is an edible insect entrepreneur who holds cricket and mealworm cooking classes at her West London home, where she also raises the critters in a backyard shed with her husband, Tom Mohan.
Her start-up, Horizon Insects, is part of Europe’s nascent edible insect scene, which features dozens of bug-based businesses offering cricket chips in the Czech Republic, bug burgers in Germany and Belgian beetle beer. The European Union headquarters in Brussels is also backing research into insect-based proteins as part of a broader sustainable food strategy.
As the Earth’s growing population puts more pressure on global food production, insects are increasingly seen as a viable food source. Experts say they’re rich in protein, yet can be raised much more sustainably than beef or pork.
Around the world, two billion people in 130 countries eat insects regularly. The global edible insect market is poised to boom, according to investment bank Barclays, citing data from Meticulous Research that forecasts it will grow from less than US$1 billion in 2019 to US$8 billion by 2030.
