Humans will eat maggots as an alternative to meat: scientists

"A hot dog, please – heavy on maggots."

Food scientists at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia, incorporate insects such as maggots and locusts into a range of specialty foods, including sausage, and develop sustainable foods based on insects for livestock.

Hoffman says conventional breeding will soon be unable to meet world demand for meat. It will therefore require other charges and alternatives to supplement the food supply with sufficient sources of protein.

"An overcrowded world will struggle to find enough protein, unless people want to open their minds and their stomachs to a much broader notion of food," said Professor Louwrens Hoffman, professor of science and technology. meat. "Do you want to eat a commercial sausage based on maggots? What about other insect larvae and even whole insects like grasshoppers? The greatest potential for sustainable protein production is in insects and new plant sources. "

The Queensland Agriculture and Food Innovation Alliance (QAAFI) team seeks to appeal to Western palates by hiding insects in prepared foods, according to studies that show they are afraid of eating whole insects.

"In other words, the insect protein must be incorporated into existing food products as an ingredient," he said. "One of my students created a very tasty ice cream."

As for other sources of sustainable protein, Hoffman also mentions kangaroo meat – ideal because it does not need grasslands for grazing. They also supplement the diet of chicken, which is currently mainly composed of cereals, with black fly larvae, with promising results.

"Poultry is a massive industry around the world and the industry is under pressure to find alternative proteins that are more sustainable, ethical and environmentally friendly than currently used cereal crops," Hoffman says, noting that wild chickens eat mainly insects.

"Everything is logical enough if you think about it."

In 2013, a report from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) urged the world's citizens to eat more insects, which, compared to conventional meats, are nutritious, cheaper to produce and more sustainable. Inspired by the report and other studies, several snack food manufacturers in the US marketed insect-based products, including Chirps chips and Chapul protein bars.

Hoffman notes that while eating insects may seem crazy to Westerners, "for millions of people around the world, it is part of the diet." He also calls for a "global reassessment of what can be a healthy, nutritious and safe food for everything."