Bbc can insects save the world

Otherwise, it would be there in the legislation. The waxworm has been marketed as the 'honey bug' to make it seem more palatable Science Photo Library. Bart Muys, an ecologist at KU Leuven in Belgium, tells the conference-goers that although insects can be reared on relatively tiny plots of land, producing insect meal requires significantly more energy than fishmeal or soymeal does, largely because the bugs need to be raised in warm conditions. The environmental impact of each production system will vary.

In some parts of the world, insect larvae are regarded as a delicacy Getty Images. For their part, Evans and Reade reject the notion that insects will be some sort of silver bullet.

Bugs, they say, will only be a real part of the solution if we are careful and thoughtful about how we integrate them into the food system. This article was originally published by Mosaic, and is reproduced under a Creative Commons licence. Mosaic Future Food. Could insects be the wonder food of the future? Share using Email. By Emily Anthes 14th October From Mosaic.

Can eating creepy crawlies offer a solution? Emily Anthes reports. Bug buffet Turning to insects for nourishment is not a novel idea — the Bible mentions entomophagy, as do texts from Ancient Greece and Rome. Commercial confusion Given that, Charlton says, it makes sense for legislators to take a cautious approach. Eating the mealworm quiche had given me a good sense of what the insectivores are up against. The dish tasted perfectly fine — the mealworms had a slightly nutty, toasted flavour and gave the quiche an extra crunch — but it still made my stomach turn.

After taking a few bites, I found myself pushing the quiche to the side of my plate. None of them had actually tasted bad. The insects themselves were quite bland. The crickets had a slightly fishy aftertaste and the buffalo worms a metallic one. The rose beetle larvae were vaguely reminiscent of smoked ham. Mostly, the insects were carriers for other, stronger flavours in a dish. In Australia, they savoured the sweet-and-sour tang of honey ants and sampled scale insect larvae, which taste like fresh mushrooms and pop softly in the mouth.

In Uganda, they feasted on queen termites, which are fatty — like little sausages — with the texture of sweetbreads, the fragrance of foie gras and a delicate sweetness. During this time, he's walked the tunnels of the Large Hadron Collider, watched Stephen Hawking deliver his Reith Lecture on Black Holes and reported on everything from simulation universes to dancing cockatoos.

Home Science news Eating insects could help us save the planet. Discover the other programmes in the season below…. Home Clips. Main content. This programme is not currently available on BBC iPlayer. Can Eating Insects Save the World? Show more. Show less. Last on. You must be over the age of Privacy notice. Smart cookie preferences. Change cookie preferences Accept all cookies.

Skip to content. Roasted grasshoppers on spinach and avocado. Read later. You don't have any saved articles. By Steve Hopkinson. And according to Dr Duncan Sivell , Curator of Diptera at the Museum, Britain's suspicious attitude towards insect-eating is far from universal: 'The practice of eating insects is far more common in other cultures than in the UK. Dr Duncan Sivell, Curator of Diptera, on an insect gathering expedition.

Edible insects For one of the Museum's late-night openings, Dr Sivell created an event that challenged visitors' preconceptions with an unusual pairing of culinary experiences: wine tasting with edible insects.