Insects and worms could help feed humanity in the future

A major food shortage crisis represents one of the greatest threats for humanity. The explosive demographic growth, the growing pollution, the exhaustion of the planet"s resources are the elements that are causing experts to claim that over the next years, humanity will have to radically change its nutrition habits.

By 2030 the demand for food will increase 50% whereas demand for water will increase 30%. This means that somewhere around that date the population of the globe will be faced with a major shortage of food, especially of meat. The experts of the UN have already found the solution to the problem, as millions of Euros have been invested in experimental farms for raising insects. The idea is not completely new, as many of the planet"s inhabitants fed on insects two or three thousand years ago. In some areas of the world, people still delight in eating insects, in particular in Asia and in Southern and Central America. At this moment approximately 1,400 species of edible insects are known (235 species of butterflies, 344 of bugs, 313 species of ants and 239 species of crickets). Insects are a source of proteins, minerals and vitamins; for example, crickets are rich in calcium and termites are a great source of iron.

A UN report, quoted by the Financial Times, states: "Edible insects are a source of high quality food. Since insects have cold blood, they are efficient at converting the food they ingest - 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". Furthermore, insects are very resistant to pollution and consume very little energy, as there is no need for fertilizers, or nutritional supplements for them. "There will come a day when people who eat insects will be more numerous than those eating meat", reputed entomologist Arnold van Huis announced in a conference in Holland. In that country, where many people breed edible insects, biscuits with added protein and made out of flour worms or bars made out of chicken and maggots. Producers hope that this kind of combinations, where the image of the insect will no longer be that obviously displayed will encourage large scale consumption.

In terms of cleanliness, those who eat such dishes are not running any risk. The planets" consumption is now of about half a kilogram of insects a year per capita on average, with Europe and North America far below that figure. However, experts claim that a large part of vegetables and fruit used in the food industry is contaminated with maggots. The major issue of those who do not wish to consume insects is psychological, because insects are viewed as dirty and harmful.