Proximate, Physicochemical, Techno-Functional and Antioxidant Properties of Three Edible Insect (Gonimbrasia belina, Hermetia illucens and Macrotermes subhylanus) Flours

In this study, edible insect flours from Gonimbrasia belina (Mashonzha), Hermetia illucens (black soldier fly larvae) and Macrotermes subhylanus (Madzhulu) were prepared and assessed in terms of proximal, physicochemical, techno-functional and antioxidant properties. The crude protein of the edible insect flours varied between 34.90–52.74%. The crude fat of the insect flours differed significantly (p < 0.05), with H. illucens (27.93%) having the highest crude fat. G. belina was lighter (L*) and yellower (+b*) compared to H. illucens and M. subhylanus, and there was no significant difference (p > 0.05) in the redness (+a*) of the edible insect flours. There were no significant differences (p > 0.05) in foam capacity and foam stability of all three edible insect flours. Moreover, the antioxidant activity against the DPPH radical was low for H. illucens (3.63%), with M. subhylanus (55.37%) exhibiting the highest DPPH radical. Principal component analysis (PCA) was applied to the techno-functional properties and antioxidant indices of the edible insect flours. PC1 accounted for 51.39% of the total variability, while component 2 accounted for 24.71%. In terms of PC1, the FS, OBC and FC were responsible for the major differences in the edible insect flours. The findings revealed that edible insect flours are a good source of antioxidants and can be used as an alternative protein source and a potential novel food additive due to their techno-functional qualities.