4 ms·

> there would have to be peer reviewed studies There are. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13593-017-0452-8 https://link.springer.com/article/10.100

> there would have to be peer reviewed studies There are. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13593-017-0452-8 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13593-017-0452-8 The science is pretty much clear on the topic; Insects beat "classic" meat production methods in every efficiency metric. 1kg of insect protein requires: 1.7kg of feed and 5l of water 1kg of beef protein requires: 20-25kg of feed and 15500l of water Most of the food used as animal feed has to be grown on arable land. A lot of it (soy, corn, ...) is actually edible for humans. Insects on the other hand, can consume what essentially amounts to waste-products such as spent grain from breweries. > Not all proteins are equal in protein and fat content. Fat is required to release bile from the gallbladder. Insects protein consists of the same 20 proteinogenic amino-acids as those of other animals. And there are more than enough sources of fat available, even if one completely abandons meat. > Putting certain insects near crops in large amounts are a high risk to those farm owners. The insects used in meat production are not crop-pests. And I would be alot more worried about naturally ocurring pests, which benefit from the huge mono-cultured plants we use to produce animal feed.

LinuxBender 5y ago
Fair enough. Those are good numbers on the water. Have any studies been done to determine if insects would add new allergens or toxins that humans are not ready to metabolize? There are existing groups that eat insects but I think they would have to be excluded from the studies as their gut biome will have adapted over a longer period of time. Have there been a large group of volunteers to live off insects? Maybe a college town? What I am most curious about is what if any labeling will have to occur on packages to detail what specific insects were being utilized. Fat content does vary from 5% to 45% on different species of insects so I think that does actually matter. And different insects have different toxins just like plants so there will be people allergic to a more or less degree to specific insects.
- usrbinbash 5y ago
  >here are existing groups that eat insects but I think they would have to be excluded from the studies as their gut biome will have adapted over a longer period of time. The "gut biome" is not a genetically fixed factor. It is a collection of acquired microorganisms and changes as we change what we eat, how much, how physically active we are, what substances the organism comes in contact with. etc. And yes, there is scientific literature on the subject, lots of it: https://scholar.google.com/scholar?start=10&q=insects+human+food+safety&hl=de&as_sdt=0,5 https://scholar.google.com/scholar?start=10&q=insects+human+... > Fat content does vary from 5% to 45% on different species of insects so I think that does actually matter Fat content also varies wildly in classical meat, and in plants, so what about it? Just as with all other food sources, someone living on an insect-based diet must take care to balance required nutritients.
  - LinuxBender 5y ago
    The "gut biome" is not a genetically fixed factor. I would never dispute that. There are known derivatives and byproducts created by the most common gut bacteria when consuming different toxins and proteins. This is where most peoples allergens originate from today. Different meats and vegetables have different affects on different people and that is why I believe this should be tested on a large sample of people. I bet you could get a college town to try it out. This would also be a good way to see if anyone is going to buy this stuff. Fat content also varies wildly in classical meat, and in plants, so what about it? And it is clearly labeled based on the specific product. So in this case are we going to have a package of crickets clearly labeled as such and you know what you are getting, or will people be buying various insects with unknown quantities of protein, fat, vitamins, etc? The packaging for meats and vegetables is clearly labeled for people to know what they are getting. Some people can't eat beef. Packages that have beef are clearly labeled as such allowing the buyer to avoid it. That is all I am asking and I don't believe that is unreasonable. My concern is that a company will just add insects as x percentage of various insects. Some people can't eat certain amounts of fat and protein unless they take bile salts and digestive enzymes to match the quantity so these people will need to know what they are getting, as they do today with meats and veggies in the grocery store. Future business owners in this market will certainly care if they operate on a margin as many agricultural business do.

LinuxBender 5y ago

Fair enough. Those are good numbers on the water. Have any studies been done to determine if insects would add new allergens or toxins that humans are not ready to metabolize? There are existing groups that eat insects but I think they would have to be excluded from the studies as their gut biome will have adapted over a longer period of time. Have there been a large group of volunteers to live off insects? Maybe a college town? What I am most curious about is what if any labeling will have to occur on packages to detail what specific insects were being utilized. Fat content does vary from 5% to 45% on different species of insects so I think that does actually matter. And different insects have different toxins just like plants so there will be people allergic to a more or less degree to specific insects.

usrbinbash 5y ago
>here are existing groups that eat insects but I think they would have to be excluded from the studies as their gut biome will have adapted over a longer period of time. The "gut biome" is not a genetically fixed factor. It is a collection of acquired microorganisms and changes as we change what we eat, how much, how physically active we are, what substances the organism comes in contact with. etc. And yes, there is scientific literature on the subject, lots of it: https://scholar.google.com/scholar?start=10&q=insects+human+food+safety&hl=de&as_sdt=0,5 https://scholar.google.com/scholar?start=10&q=insects+human+... > Fat content does vary from 5% to 45% on different species of insects so I think that does actually matter Fat content also varies wildly in classical meat, and in plants, so what about it? Just as with all other food sources, someone living on an insect-based diet must take care to balance required nutritients.
- LinuxBender 5y ago
  The "gut biome" is not a genetically fixed factor. I would never dispute that. There are known derivatives and byproducts created by the most common gut bacteria when consuming different toxins and proteins. This is where most peoples allergens originate from today. Different meats and vegetables have different affects on different people and that is why I believe this should be tested on a large sample of people. I bet you could get a college town to try it out. This would also be a good way to see if anyone is going to buy this stuff. Fat content also varies wildly in classical meat, and in plants, so what about it? And it is clearly labeled based on the specific product. So in this case are we going to have a package of crickets clearly labeled as such and you know what you are getting, or will people be buying various insects with unknown quantities of protein, fat, vitamins, etc? The packaging for meats and vegetables is clearly labeled for people to know what they are getting. Some people can't eat beef. Packages that have beef are clearly labeled as such allowing the buyer to avoid it. That is all I am asking and I don't believe that is unreasonable. My concern is that a company will just add insects as x percentage of various insects. Some people can't eat certain amounts of fat and protein unless they take bile salts and digestive enzymes to match the quantity so these people will need to know what they are getting, as they do today with meats and veggies in the grocery store. Future business owners in this market will certainly care if they operate on a margin as many agricultural business do.