UN Pushes to Fight Global Hunger... With Insects

Nevermind that it’s cicada season right now — if you’re looking for a tasty snack, you may want to try the caterpillars of southern Africa. Supposedly, they’re pretty tasty.

No, this isn’t an elaborate and childish prank to get you to chew on some gross things (though, could you really blame us if we tried?). In fact, these are just a few of the bugs the United Nations is hoping to tempt people into wrapping their lips around. If we eat enough bugs, the Food and Agriculture Organization said this week, we could potentially fight global starvation and even give the environment a hand.

Bugs are plentiful, chock-full of minerals (like zinc, copper, magnesium, manganese, and fiber — basically, your entire daily multivitamin) and protein, and leave a “low environmental footprint,”

according

to the UN’s statement. They’re efficient at turning food into edible meat —on average, an insect can convert 2 kg of feed into 1 kg of edible insect meat (as a comparison, cattle requires 8 kg of feed to make 1 kg of cattle meat). And, they won’t just feed you! Insects would make great treats for your pets and livestock, as well. Their Edible Insect Program is also looking into arachnids — tarantulas and scorpions and cave spiders, oh my! — as another potential source of nutrient richness.

Unconvinced? What if we tell you that some beetles and crickets can come pretty darned close to providing you with the same amount of protein per ounce as lean red meat? No? Well, how about this: Grubs, grasshoppers, spiders, bee larvae, wasps, and silkworms are all considered delicacies in different parts of the world.

The idea of chewing on bugs may make you gag (we’re not the only ones, right?), but hopping on the bandwagon could be extremely beneficial for reducing global hunger. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, 2010-2012 saw 868 million people suffering from undernourishment or hunger. While the majority of those people are in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Asia, even developed parts of the world saw people suffering from starvation — And, really, one person starving is a person too many. The widespread availability, quick reproductive rate, and

nutritional

benefits of insects are major points of attraction in helping to reduce some of that suffering.

And, anyway, haven’t we learned that being ballsy enough to eat gross things can make you tons of money? Just be sure to donate some of that

cash

towards fighting global hunger once you’re rolling in dough from chewing on a maggot on national television.

[Pic via Flickr - Adam Kahtava]