Domestic crickets will be available whole, frozen, dried and in powder form in the European Union.
The European Commission has authorized the marketing of house crickets (Acheta domesticus) as a new food or as a food ingredient in the European Union, the EU Commission announced on Friday.
House crickets are the third insect to be approved as a food ingredient on the EU market, after the European Commission approved the use of the larvae of the common flour beetle (Tenebrio molitor) last July, and the migratory locust (Migratory locust) as a new food in November.
The approval of the distribution of domestic crickets as food was made possible by the assessment of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which operates under the auspices of the European Union:
PRODUCTS DERIVED FROM THIS INSECT ARE SAFE, HEALTHY AND HAVE A HIGH PROTEIN CONTENT UNDER SPECIFIC FARMING AND PREPARATION CONDITIONS.
Domestic crickets will be available whole, frozen, dried and in powder form in the European Union. Products containing the new food must be labeled appropriately to draw attention to possible allergic reactions, they said.
They recalled that the Union's food strategy defines insects as an alternative protein source, which can support the EU's transition to a more sustainable food system.
MILLIONS OF PEOPLE ALREADY CONSUME INSECTS, IN ADDITION, THE FOOD AND AGRICULTURAL ORGANIZATION OF THE UN (FAO) CLASSIFIES INSECTS AS A HEALTHY AND VERY NUTRITIOUS SOURCE OF FOOD, HIGH IN FAT, PROTEIN, VITAMINS, FIBER AND MINERALS.
they added.
According to the committee's previous announcement, the widespread use of insect larvae in the food industry will bring environmental and economic benefits if traditional animal protein sources are replaced by ones that require less feed, produce less waste, and have negligible greenhouse gas emissions.
MTI
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