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Could you soon grill a fly sausage during a barbecue in your backyard? Food scientists at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia, are investigating the use of maggots, locusts and other replacement proteins in a range of specialty foods, including sausage .
Prof. Louwrens Hoffman, a professor of meat sciences, said that conventional livestock industries would not be able to meet global demand for meat and that alternatives were needed to replace or supplement traditional protein sources.
"An overcrowded world will struggle to find enough protein, unless people want to open their minds and stomachs to a much broader notion of food," Hoffman said. "Do you want to eat a commercial sausage based on maggots? What about other insect larvae and even whole insects like grasshoppers?
Professor of Meat Science at the University of Queensland, Louwrens Hoffman (Photo credit: University of Queensland)
According to Hoffman, the greatest potential for sustainable protein production is in insects and new plant sources.
But to attract Western consumers, insects must be concealed in foods prepared in advance because studies have shown that they feared eating whole insects, Hoffman said.
"In other words, the insect protein must be incorporated into existing food products as an ingredient," Hoffman said. "For example, one of my students created a very tasty ice cream."
Eating insects are commonly found in at least 113 countries, according to a 2017 study published in Nutrition Newsletter. In 2013, the United Nations even recommended edible insects as a "promising solution" for conventional meat production, either for direct human consumption or for indirect use as raw material.
Sausages made from fly larvae. (University of Queensland)
The Queensland Hoffman Alliance for Food and Agriculture Innovation (QAAFI) involves the use of black soldier fly larvae (maggots) (Hermetia illucens) as a source of protein for chicken production.
"Poultry is a massive industry all over the world and the industry is under pressure to find alternative proteins that are more sustainable, ethical and environmentally friendly than the cereal crops currently in use," he said.
The Hoffman team found that broiler diets containing up to 15% larval flour do not compromise production performance, nutrient efficiency, aroma, taste, juiciness and tenderness. meat, or the long chain fatty acid composition.
"It's quite logical if you think about it," Hoffman said. "Wild chickens do not eat food preparations. They eat insects and larvae.
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