Insects Used as Food and Feed: Isn't That What We All Need?

Victor Benno Meyer-Rochow; Chuleui Jung

doi:10.3390/foods9081003

Insects Used as Food and Feed: Isn't That What We All Need?

Foods. 2020 Jul 27;9(8):1003. doi: 10.3390/foods9081003.

Authors

Victor Benno Meyer-Rochow^{1

2}, Chuleui Jung^{1

3}

Affiliations

¹ Agricultural Science and Technology Research Institute, Andong National University, Andong 36729, Korea.
² Department of Genetics and Ecology, Oulu University, SF-90140 Oulu, Finland.
³ Department of Plant medicals, Andong National University, Andong 36729, Korea.

Abstract

This Special Issue of Foods explores different aspects of how insects can be used as a novel resource for food and feed. Some contributions deal with questions of acceptability and legality, others tackle problems related to innovative techniques in processing and marketing food, and yet another group of papers highlights the use of insects and their bio-active products in the context of promoting human health. The collective aim of the contributions by the researchers from at least 20 countries is to examine whether the use of insects-be it for food, feed, or therapeutic purposes-has a future. We conclude that positive aspects undoubtedly exist regarding the nutritional and pharmacological value of various insect species but that environmental and bio-functional issues could even outweigh the nutritional value of food insects.

Keywords: acceptance; bio-active compounds; entomophagy; food shortage; insect edibility; nutrients.

Publication types

Editorial