The left has been pushing the consumption of bugs for many years now. Back in 2021, when trillions of cicadas were set to emerge, Newsweek published an article highlighting that they’re not only safe to eat, but "actually taste quite nice when dipped in chocolate, made into a stir fry, cooked into a pizza, added to some fresh banana bread, or perhaps a rhubarb pie." Other Newsweek articles dating back to 2018 turn the spotlight on eating "grilled tarantula or mealworms on toast," as well as crickets.
It's stomach churning, but environmentalists are pushing it as a "sustainable food source," which means major figures and companies are jumping on board.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has funded companies developing insect-based foods and technologies aimed at developing "a method for the efficient production of nutritionally dense food using insect species."
Now, one of the world's largest food companies, Tyson Foods, is partnering with the Netherlands-based global insect ingredients company, Protix, to support "more efficient sustainable proteins and lipids for use in the global food system."
At this point, the deal is aimed at developing animal and fish feed, rather than for "consumer application," said John R. Tyson, chief financial officer of Tyson Foods.
The company will acquire a minority stake in Protix and will help build and operate an insect ingredient facility in the U.S.
A 2021 report from Rabobank noted that “the demand for insect protein, mainly as an animal feed and pet food ingredient, could reach half a million metric tons by 2030, up from today’s market of approximately 10,000 metric tons.” That year, Mars launched a line of cat food made from insects, called LoveBug.
The Springdale, Arkansas-based Tyson doesn’t make pet food, but it does sell its animal byproducts for use in the pet food and aquaculture market, which feeds fish, the CFO said. Byproducts like animal fats, hides and inedible proteins, if not used or reduced, can end up in landfills. In this case, Tyson can send what’s in the stomach of cattle it has processed to a Protix facility, where it’s fed to insects. For the company, creating a larger market for this type of waste can not only reduce waste but offer a larger revenue stream. (CNN)
So while you won't be eating Tyson chicken nuggets coated in cricket flour just yet, it's probably in the pipeline.
