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Except food is already so cheap in America that there is no incentive to eat bugs. The raw fish example doesn't work because raw fish is a delicacy.
by joonix 13y ago
Except food is already so cheap in America that there is no incentive to eat bugs. The raw fish example doesn't work because raw fish is a delicacy.
- ImprovedSilence 13y agoSoooo, make crickets a delicacy, get some good pr up and running to make it socially acceptable, and charge health-conscious yuppies $40/lb for em, and it'll sell. It's all about presentation, appearances, and marketing.
- kasbah 13y agoCan you really see that happening though? The negative associations attached to insect eating are too great. I think it would take more than marketing to change such social norms.
- warfangle 13y agoYou obviously haven't watched Mad Men. Just toast them! ;)
- graeme 13y agoA committed sub-group could also change things. I'm part of the paleo community. I'd love to try eating bugs, and I think most of the people I know in the community would agree. It could then spread out from that and similar groups. This has already happened with such things as eating offal, which is experiencing a resurgence among paleo groups (and probably foodies, but i'm not one).
- rthomas6 13y agoDon't be so sure. How many untraveled Americans would consider raw fish a delicacy 50 years ago? Marketing has already created and changed more social norms than we'd like to admit.
- bluedino 13y agoOn the same note, not many Americans at raw (rare, rather) beef 50 years ago.
- tellarin 13y agoMost of the world population is in Asia, where many don't have that negativity. Other huge chunks of people in Africa. I can definitely see, with time, other places "adapting".
- booop 13y agoUpto the mid-19th century eating lobster was a mark of poverty : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobster#History http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobster#History . So it definately is possible.
- Coincoin 13y agoYes it's possible. Lobsters were once considered the cockroaches of the see and only poor people would ever eat those disgusting creatures. Now it's a delicacy.
- joonix 13y agoNot quite. Raw fish wasn't a big leap because we've been eating cooked fish for thousands of years. You can start with tuna "steaks," which look like a rare beef steak, and go from there. There is nothing like insect "meat" in our diet. The closest thing we have to a bunch of small crickets is a bowl of cereal in terms of shape and form.
- ImprovedSilence 13y ago>> There is nothing like insect "meat" in our diet. Shrimp are pretty disgusting to look at. Live shrimp are pretty "insect like" I'd say. as mentioned elsewhere, lobsters too. When you take a step back though, lots of our current food practices are pretty "weird" too. Like, milking mammals for their mothers milk, and then letting it turn sour and harden, calling it cheese, and eating it? Just because "it's been done for thousands of years" doesn't mean holistically it isnt a pretty weird thing to do...
- coldarchon 13y agoStop talking if you don't look it up first. There are several examples of entomophagy in the western world. It's not been long since cockchafer were eaten by your (grand-) grandparents. This is a start for you: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entomophagy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entomophagy Insects are part of my diet pretty much since I started making Sushi regularly. And I'm planning to have a farm in August with a friend who is a farmer.