Friday, May 7, 2021

Meanwhile In Europe: "Worms for dinner? Europe backs insect-based food in a bid to promote alternative protein"

They may have removed the "You'll own nothing and you'll be happy"* video from the internet but the Davos dudes are really serious and really pushing this.

From the World Economic Forum, May 6:

  • The European Union just gave the green light to using mealworms in food.
  • Edible insects are high in proteins and vitamins.
  • They also consume fewer natural resources than livestock.
  • But the demand for meat-based protein is set to double by 2050.

Worms are now firmly on the menu in Europe.

The European Union (EU) has ruled that the larval stage of the Tenebrio molitor beetle, the mealworm, is safe for people to eat and it will shortly be on the market as a “novel food”.

EU researchers said that the worms, eaten whole or in powder form, are protein-rich, while the UN Food and Agriculture Organization said that edible insects “contain high-quality protein, vitamins and amino acids for humans”.

Green insects

As well as being a nutritious food source, insects consume fewer resources than traditional livestock. There are, of course, many parts of the world where insects are already part of everyday diets. Industrializing their production and consumption could open up new routes to feeding the world’s growing population and alleviating some of the environmental pressures caused by conventional agriculture.

Ensuring access to safe, healthy sources of food is a key part of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) drive. From zero hunger to climate action, from ending poverty to ensuring responsible use of resources, many of the 17 SDGs relate to the food people eat, how it is grown and how it is distributed.

According to the World Economic Forum’s Meat: The Future report, keeping up with the demand for animal-derived protein could put meeting the SDGs and Paris Climate Agreement targets in jeopardy....

....MUCH MORE

I think I'll have what the Davos crowd is having.

*vaguely reminiscent of Hermann Göring's statement to the to the 1923 putschers:

"Shut up. You've got your beer, haven't you?"
-Fat Hermann, during the Beer Hall Putsch

 only he wasn't so fat then.

Also from the WEF, if you have exchanged Chrome for Firefox but stay awake nights worrying that you just aren't sending the powers-that-be enough of your personal information, Ta Da!:

Fitness trackers: an unexpected aid in the fight against pandemics


Previously:
I Said I Want "an Omlette," NOT "an Umlaut": "Ÿnsect acquires Protifarm to raise insects for human consumption"
 
"The EU just approved mealworms for human consumption. Will Ÿnsect take the bait?"
No. No to worms.
Maybe termites, if the hydrogen biofactory experiments don't work out. Crunchy.

And yes to gratuitous umlauts....