Insect-based pancake mix, anyone?

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Next Millennium Farms in Norwood, Ont., is betting on a future where eating insects is no big deal. Jarrod Goldin, who runs the operation with his two brothers, told the Toronto Star that "we want Next Millennium Farms to be the first company on the stock market that is a wholesaler of insect protein."
The company, which was founded in the fall of 2013, is one of a very small number of farms in North America that breed, raise and process insects for human consumption. Their website lists products such as meal worm flour, insect-based pancake mix and flavoured roasted crickets. They also sell insects as animal feed.

A 2013 UN report entitled "Edible Insects: Future Prospects for Food and Feed Security" points out that many nations around the world already include insects in their diet. And for those that don't? Well, when the world's population reaches nine billion by 2050, they might have to. Insects, the paper argues, are an excellent source of protein with a very low environmental impact. Crickets can produce the same amount of protein as cattle with 12 times less feed. They also require much less water, and take up a whole lot less space.

Joining the Goldin brothers in the race for insect-snack dominance is Big Cricket Farms in Youngstown, Ohio. They have partnered with insect-food startup Six Foods from Boston to make "chirps" – tortilla chips made from ground-up crickets. BF