THE NORMALIZING OF EDIBLE BUGS

At first, I thought it was a joke. Then it hit me this was for real.

Maybe now it is happening to you as well. You are seeing articles popping up on the internet about eating bugs. Celebrities are doing commercials on it. Famous athletes are touting the protein benefits.

Maybe you think it is a joke, too.

Trust me…  It isn’t.

They really expect us to embrace entomophagy–the consumption of bugs.

What we are experiencing right now is the normalization process or the establishment of a new social norm… Angelina Jolie eating a tarantula in Cambodia while frying up a cuisine of crickets and scorpions for her kids. Nicole Kidman eating wiggling mealworms and stating that eating bugs is her secret fetish while mumbling, “Mmmmm, extraordinary!” Selma Hayek and Ellen Degeneres popping fried crickets, one after another, saying they are delicious…

Celebrity endorsements are one of the most prevalent marketing strategies used to increase acceptance of a new concept. But, is it working amongst us when it comes to bug eating…?

In general, the Western world has an aversion to eating insects. However, in other parts of the world, edible bugs are commonplace.

Climate changers claim that farming insects will significantly cut carbon emissions from food productions. Their idea is to “go green” by eating insects.

Worldwide, there are over 2,000 edible bugs–fly larva, locust, mealworms, crickets, cockroaches, spiders–and the list goes on. Eating insects is claimed to be sustainable and eco friendly.

FAOUN (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) is an organization to end world hunger. They say that insect farming produces one hundredth of the emissions output from farming beef, cattle, or pigs.

Climate change advocates also claim that farming insects would make far more efficient use of what land is left. They say the world’s stock of pasture and arable land is eroding.

But wait, there’s still more to the pro-bug eating argument. They say feed for insects is dramatically lower than livestock feed. And then there is the water scarcity debate–that for every kg of cattle protein, it takes 22,000 liters of water to produce.

You see, supposedly insects are drought-resistant, and therefore for every 1 kg of insect protein, it takes only 1 liter of water to produce.

Also, those critters do not require large doses of hormones or antibiotics in the farming process like the flesh counterparts.

The big thrust in the insect debate is that insect farming is more sustainable and affordable than meat production.

You are probably wondering who is behind this climate saving, sustainable, edible bug food source…? None other than Bill Gates and the WEF.

The who?

The World Economic Forum. Where have you been? The global elite organization composed of wealthy celebrities, politicians, business leaders and the royal family, spearheaded and founded by Klaus Schwab.  They meet annually in Davos, Switzerland, to address issues such as global warming and, you guessed it, feeding the world edible bugs.

In The Great Reset by Klaus Schwab, he outlines the re-creation of a new world order aka the post-covid era. He has been the driving force behind the Great Reset initiative, something that will restrict and control what you can eat or own in the future.

In his book, he also address the WEF’s mission for global depopulation.

Huh??

You heard right.  Too. Many. People.  So they say they must do something about it.

Add to this, the “coincidence” of well over 20 food production plants that have exploded and burnt to the ground across America, the many livestock herds that have been destroyed, the predictions of coming food shortages, all in the past few months…

It would almost seem we are being set up for a food shortage crisis globally. It certainly appears to be too many incidences in too short a time to be a mere coincidence…

Farmers are being mandated to destroy their crops OR they are being bought out by government backed incentive programs. Farmers are also being forced to depopulate their livestock, and herds are being euthanized due to feed supply chain issues.

But let’s get back to the topic of eating bugs. With all these pro bug eating and supportive claims, are you ready to fry up some crunchy crickets or saute some grub worms yet?

Before you add the seasoning, let’s first consider the downside to ingesting bugs.

My first big beef with bugs is that many contain chitin. This is what makes up the hard shell of an insect known as the exoskeleton. It triggers cytokines (small proteins) that injure organs and leads to asthma, dermatitis, autoimmune conditions like MS and lupus, cancer, even in some cases death.

Don’t believe me? It’s all on the NIH website for your researching. The fact is, our digestive systems simply cannot process and break down chitin. But birds can. If only we had the same digestive system as our feathered friends.

Currently, edible bug processing plants are popping up everywhere. Innovafeed in Illinois is one such plant that raised $450 million for the production and expansion of insect food for humans. Oh, and for our pets, too.

I don’t know about your pets, but my cats throw up every bug they ever eat. Must be they don’t have the same digestive system as birds either…?

Edible bugs are already being offered to children in some schools. They are quietly slipping in bug ingredients in things like bolognese made with mealworms and crickets. Bon appetit.

Aspire Food Group is a global industry leader in the production of edible insects. They are building a 100,000 sq. ft. plant that will bring bug food across the North American Market. Yumm.

They are introducing crickets as an “all natural, sustainable, superfood ingredient that is nutritionally superior to livestock, cell-cultured, and plant-based alternatives.”

Insect farms are popping up globally that make flour from insects, then bake bread, make pasta, protein bars and “fitness” cookies.

The WEF is very vocal about its goal to have humans eating bugs and liking it. If you still are not sold on the bug-eating idea, you’d better start checking all labels carefully from this day forward. Instead of using corn meal, for example, your snack foods are already being filled with insect protein.

Canadian brand Actually Foods states that their cheese puffs are “powered by crickets” to the tune of 10 grams of protein per serving. You will even find “organic” cricket flour on labels. I wonder what makes a bug organic or nonorganic? I’m afraid to find out.

Note that many of these snack bag goodies also caution in the small print, “People who are allergic to shellfish may also be allergic to crickets.” I wonder if that’s why my cats upchuck every cricket they munch on?

You will also find your delicious whole roasted crickets in a variety of taste-tempting flavorings derived from msg.

But before these tasty morsels get you salivating, let’s do a deep dive reality check.

Bugs are not clean. Think about it–eat the whole bug, eat their poo, too. Insects carry disease. It is a well-known fact that many insects are the primary or intermediate hosts or carriers of human diseases.

Pathogens that are capable of being transmitted by insects include parasites like tapeworms, flukes and roundworms, not to mention bacterial and viral infections.

Let’s not forget historical plagues that were spread by insects like the bubonic plague, typhoid fever, lyme, chagas, and west nile.

To sum it all up, not only is the WEF obsessed with the idea of feeding the world with insects, but the Financial Times and The Economist take a similar stand, that eating bugs is “a culinary idea with legs” that makes a lot of sense.

Meanwhile, food prices are soaring and products are becoming scarce. You can expect meat, poultry, and pork prices to become unaffordably high, followed by eventual rationing, while insect-based foods will become abundantly available and affordable.

While the Western world generally cringes at the idea of eating cockroaches, other cultures around the world enjoy eating them as an appetizer. Mexico serves up worm-covered candies. Brazil dips queen ants in chocolate. Rural African accounts for 60% dietary bug protein. Ghana eats termites as a means of survival. Thailand serves crickets, grasshoppers and a variety of worms as favorite snacks. China is famous for bee and moth larva foods. Netherlands infuses ground mealworms into its chocolates.

So you see, arguments exist for both sides of the edible bug debate both in favor of its nutritional value and against its disease causing affects.

As for me, there’s never been a better time to go vegetarian.

 

What are your thoughts on eating bugs?  👍 or 👎 ??  I’d love to hear your opinions.  

(comments below)

On June 5, 2023   /   Blog   /   4 Comments