Italy’s first foods with insects land on the market. Inaugurating the new era of Made in Italy agribusiness is Fucibo, a dynamic company that has been active in the sector for 5 years with an ecommerce platform and a
magazine
. It starts with a pasta, cracker, and corn chips. All organic and high in protein.
Edible insects are touted as one of the sustainable sources of protein fit to feed the planet in the coming decades. And not only for populations afflicted by malnutrition in disadvantaged areas of the planet. There are at least five reasons to eat them, according to the founders of Fucibo.
1) Italian foods with insects, what a taste.
Each type of edible insect has its own flavor, a characteristic nuance associated with the taste of roasted peanut or almond. Ideal for use in flours and baked goods. Fucibo uses them both in pasta (10 minutes cooking time) and in baked crackers with sesame and poppy seeds.
When employed as an ingredient, moreover, insect flours can be flavored to taste, as is the case with Fucibo’s cheese and pizza extruded corn chips.
2) Nutritional profiles
Edible insects contain all essential nutrients, especially complete protein, fat, iron and zinc. For the same weight, crickets provide more than twice the protein, five times more magnesium and three times more iron than beef.
They also win in the comparison with protein from plant sources. The twofold advantage is first in the complete protein profile (complete with all 8 amino acids) and the lower amount of soil consumed (never a cause of deforestation).
3) Versatility
The nutritional profile makes insects ideal in weight-loss diets and for athletes, as well as in daily nutrition.
In fact, in addition to baked goods, insects are used in snacks and protein bars for athletes.
4) Consistency with the circular economy.
Transformers of food waste into valuable new proteins, insects are seamlessly integrated into the circular economy.
5) Sustainability
The environmental sustainability of edible insect production is unparalleled. Livestock farms consume minimal amounts of resources and cause 80 times less greenhouse gas emissions than cattle. They take up little space: about 250 square meters are needed to produce 1kg of beef compared to 15 needed for insects. The natural crowded condition, moreover, does not pose the risk of sacrificing animal welfare.
The water footprint in turn is at very low levels. Including the water needed to produce the feed, it is estimated that to obtain one gram of protein with insects requires about 23 liters of water, with cattle 112 liters.
Nutritional efficiency
Additional benefits come from the insects’ marked efficiency in turning the food they take in into protein.
To obtain 1kg of beef requires 10kg of feed, 1.7 for 1kg of crickets. The edible part, moreover, is 80% in a cricket, compared with 40% in cattle (55% for pigs and chickens).
Italian foods with insects, a galloping market
The big challenge now is to convince food-loving Italians to experiment with entomophagy. Fucibo’s founders are confident, in part because the industry is estimated to grow 20-25 percent annually through 2024.
The market for edible insects is estimated that it could reach a turnover of 50-80 million euros in Italy in 2024, between 600 million and one billion euros in Europe. Most of the supply (80-85%) will be concentrated on products made from insect meal, the remaining 15-20% from whole insects.
Professional journalist since January 1995, he has worked for newspapers (Il Messaggero, Paese Sera, La Stampa) and periodicals (NumeroUno, Il Salvagente). She is the author of journalistic surveys on food, she has published the book "Reading labels to know what we eat".
Related post
Bisphenol A toxicity, EFSA declares a public health alert
Listeria alert on desserts, Müller recalls them 12 days after expiration date
Honey, fruit juices, jams and marmalades, dehydrated milk. Proposals for reform of marketing standards in EU
EFSA opinion on nitrosamines in food. The population is at risk
