Edible insects, a valuable protein source from ancient to modern times

The current COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that we are not prepared to deal with food security amid unexpected situations; the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) has stipulated that the future of our food & agriculture looks challenging toward the year 2050; primarily in response to the fact that global population is expected to increase by 9 billion people by 2050. Although entomophagy has been practiced by humans for thousands of years, until recently, edible insects have gained special attention due to their high nutritional value (particularly their high protein and essential amino acid content) and lower environmental impact that could help alleviate the global food demand. Edible insects are classified into eight main orders belonging to Blattodea (cockroaches and termites), Coleoptera (beetles), Diptera (flies), Hemiptera (cicadas, stink bugs), Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, ants), Lepidoptera (butterflies, moths), Odonata (dragonflies), and Orthoptera (crickets, grasshoppers, locusts). Several traditional cooking (e.g., boiling, roasting, sun-drying) and processing technologies (e.g., pasteurization, enzymatic proteolysis, high pressure processing) have shown that it is feasible to prepare safe and nutritious insects and/or foods with insects. Nevertheless, challenges associated with consumers acceptance to eat insects, as well as potential presence of anti-nutritive factors and allergens, need to be carefully evaluated as the industry grows in the coming years. Foreseeing such food shortages during pandemics and future food security concerns, consumers, scientists, and the food industry need to consider the value of farming insects as promising protein sources.