The World Hunger Organization Essay Example

protein they need in their diets, resulting in them having completely vegetarian diets or else having to find protein in other sources- like eggs, nuts, or soy (“World Hunger…”). This is why entomophagy is a great option to be incorporated into the diets of future generations. Insect meat is a great source of protein, and unlike other meat options (like beef and pork), it has much less fats and oils which makes it a much healthier option (Van Huis 67). Likewise, insect meat poses a greater variety of meal options for people. While it can be made into meat substitutes for classic beef or pork based meals, it is said to have a nutty flavor and is also a great option for nut based foods like granola bars. In fact, one study found that insect granola bars were a popular choice, even among vegetarians (Van Huis 60).

Should entomophagy become a more popular choice in the future, the millions of different types of insects in the world could provide further variety in the types of dishes that will be available. Another great benefit of adopting insect meat into future diets is the fact that it can bolster the economy. Insect meat, unlike other meats, takes very few resources comparatively speaking. Insect meat production takes up much less space, water, food, and money to produce. “Crickets require only 2 kilograms of feed for every 1 kilogram of bodyweight gain” (Huis 57). This is a great contrast to the vast amount of land and resources that are required to nurture livestock in preparation for sale.

Likewise, insects do not require an agricultural space to be prepared for consumption. If

the space is prepared properly, insects can be bred in any location, including cities and harsh terrains like the desert or arctic. This would free up agricultural land for vegetable farming, housing, or ecotourism. Additionally, insects breed much more quickly than livestock does. Unlike beef, pork, chicken, and even fish, insects often reach maturity within a few weeks or sometimes even days, and therefore would have a very fast turnover rate that would be able to keep up with demand for protein in the future generations, making it a more affordable option for families and an economically advantageous options for producers.

Likewise, as the study from “Edible Insects” suggests, insect meat has the potential to be able to reach a new demographic formally unavailable for meat-producing companies- vegetarians. The study found that granola bars that included insect meat was actually a popular choice among vegetarians, who didn’t have issues with protein obtained from insects instead of animals. Thus, if companies who currently produce animal meat were to switch over to produce insect meat, they would likely experience a boom in their incomes, which can create more jobs and stimulate the economy. Finally, perhaps the most important benefit of adopting entomophagy in the Western World, is the fact that is an environmentally conscious choice.

Firstly, the fact that insect meat production requires much less land and resources is a major benefit. The FAO states that as it is now, about 70% of all agricultural land is devoted to livestock (Huis 59). If insect meat were to become commonplace in the future, however, it is predicted that the amount of land needed for protein production would go down to

only ? of what is today (“Eating Insects…”). This is important as it is only recently that the public has begun to understand that our resources are finite and it’s pivotal that in the future we choose options that use our resources carefully and effectively. Switching to a primarily insect-based diet would help accomplish this.

Likewise, reducing the amount of livestock that we produce is an important step in reducing carbon emissions. Traditional animal-meat production was recently called one of the least sustainable forms of food production, with beef production topping the list and insect-meat production being singled out as one of the most sustainable types of food production in the world today (“Eating Insects…”). Along with factory emissions, beef production is one of the highest causes of carbon emissions in the world today, and poses a real threat to the environment and climate change, but switching to insect-meat would help cut that carbon emission drastically and promise a better future for our world. In fact, one scientist even suggested that insect substitutes for fish oil and fish meal also have the potential to reduce overfishing and contribute to environmental change in that way as well.

Either way, entomophagy is a promising step in the right direction for environmental activism in the upcoming decades. Overall, the adoption of insect-meat into the diets of the Western World presents several enticing benefits. Firstly, the high source of protein and low levels of fat and oils makes insect meat a much healthier and easier to access option for malnourished people around the world. Secondly, the low cost of production and high turnover rate makes the production of insect meat have

the promise to make meat-production companies a lot of money that would help stimulate the economy. And thirdly, the low use of resources and the reduction of beef-production would pose a very promising advantage to the environmental impact of meat-production in the upcoming years. If the Western World were to incorporate insects as a major part of their diets in the upcoming years, this choice could prove to be one that will better our world and help propel us into a prosperous future.

Works Cited Eating insects can cut farmland by one-third. (2017). Food Manufacture, 21. Essential Environment Modified Masteringenvironmentalscience With Pearson Etext The Science Behind the Stories. (2014). Pearson College Div.

Huis, A. v. (2013). Edible Insects : Future Prospects for Food and Feed Security. Rome: FAO.

van Huis, A., Takken-Kaminker, F., Blumenfeld-Schaap, D., van Gurp, H., & Dicke, M. (2014). The Insect Cookbook : Food for a Sustainable Planet. New York: Columbia University Press. World Hunger, Poverty Facts, Statistics 2016. (n.d.).

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