Currently animal and fish products are used worldwide as a protein supplement in animal feeds and fishmeal. A rapidly evolving alternative to these animal and fish supplements is insect protein.
Insect protein is already allowed in the EU and many other companies are being setup to cash in on this alternative. Nutrition Technologies, a Malaysian company based in Johor, is growing Black Soldier Fly larvae in conjunction with a Vietnamese university. After processing the larvae they have “a high-protein meal of about 60% and oil products that are high in saturated fats that also contain elements of protein and antimicrobial peptides which is used are an energy source in feed.” The leftover frass can also be sold as value added fertiliser.
As a “soft entry” into the human food chain insect fortified feed makes sense. Most animals would not eat fish as part on their natural diet and many fish also eat insects! This gives a good story to tell and shouldn’t raise any red flags with consumers.
Insects will undoubtedly play a major part in feeding the world, either directly for human consumption or as inputs for other foods.
