Can you imagine sitting down at the dinner table and tucking into a plate of … bugs? Well, according to
United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, approximately 2 billion people across the globe already incorporate insects into their daily diet.
With the population estimated to reach 9 billion by 2050, food producers are scrambling to feed our burgeoning world. Kevin Bachhuber of
Big Cricket Farms believes that introducing insects into our diets will give us an efficient and sustainable protein source that is both surprisingly delicious and nutritious.
“Crickets require less food, water and space compared to traditional livestock,” Bachhuber says. “It takes 25 pounds of feed and 786 gallons of water to produce 1 pound of beef, while it only takes 2 pounds of feed and 1 gallon of water to produce 1 pound of crickets.”
The limited resources needed to raise crickets make them the ideal method of providing protein to food deserts or developing countries.
Big Cricket Farms is the first insect farm in the U.S. to go through the licensing and inspection processes with the Ohio Department of Agriculture and FDA as a frozen food processing facility. The crickets are raised in indoor facilities until they reach maturity at 6 to 8 weeks, when they are humanely frozen and then shipped to consumers.
The demand for the these crunchy critters is staggering.
Chefs are clamoring to serve them in their gourmet restaurants, at galas and special events.
The naturally nutty flavor of the hoppers can even be altered by adjusting their diet. Bachhuber has experimented with a range of flavors from cilantro for tacos to mint for chocolate-covered mint crickets.
In addition to being eaten whole, these crickets are also sold to protein powder companies with their own processing facilities.