on not eating crickets
Every great story of our age starts with “s/he said on their blog/Twitter/etc and here’s why they’re wrong”. Admit it, you have also felt at least once the need to set the record straight on something or other, even if in the end you didn’t write that blog post or snarky reply.
I felt that tickle this morning when I read someone’s speech about the future, and how we will be all be eating insects in ten years’ time. I am no credentialled expert on the future of food. But nutrition, cooking and food, in general, are close to my heart and an integral part of my life. I have studied nutrition and continue to in my spare time. I have advised startups bringing to market hip and healthy food and drink products. I have followed an about 80% vegan diet for over a decade, way before veganism went mainstream. And I love eating great, tasty food of all kinds of national cuisines.
And, save for an apocalypse, I don’t think we’ll be munching full time on insects. We will, however, be eating more plants.
First up, culture and emotions. We don’t just eat to satisfy our bodies’ nutritional needs. I’d go as far as to say many people don’t really think much about the nutritional makeup of their food. We eat what we eat for various other reasons. We eat food we like. We eat what makes us feel good (sometimes only in the moment).
We have cultural and emotional connections to food. Just look at how central food and mealtimes are to so many cultures. Break a food-related taboo in a country you visit and see what happens. Just how upset people will be. Or they just won’t serve you, like when I first moved to France and tried to order lunch at 3pm.
Our experience with food starts way before it touches our lips. We eat with our eyes before we taste, and the smell of food will have a strong impact on the taste we experience. Just ask any wine connoisseur. Or think about the comfort foods you grew up with as a child. Likely those dishes still make you feel warm and fuzzy even now. Now, look at other culture’s comfort foods. In some cases, you won’t understand what the big deal is. You might even think “gross”. Eating is about so much more than fuelling the body. Taste, memories and tradition. Seduction and beauty. The background to family discussions. The reason to see friends.
So, insects. Sure, some cultures regard certain insects as delicacies. Many others, however, don’t. I love trying new dishes from different cuisines. Yet, nothing could make me want to eat the fried scorpions and similar delicacies at the night markets of Beijing and Qufu. My friends tried. They didn’t want seconds. Nor did I feel the urge to try the dried insects at a massive food exhibition in London’s ExCel. You might be more adventurous. But the only way I can see insects, which are indeed protein-rich and cheap, going mainstream in the Western world is as a ground-up powder to be added to other ingredients. Or as animal feed. As there are tastier alternatives that don’t make you feel… yuk.
Veganism has gone mainstream in many countries recently. It’s always been mainstream in others. It is good for the environment, for our health and for the climate. You can eat a nutritionally well-balanced diet as a vegan. You can absolutely get enough protein (though vitamin B12 consumption needs a bit of attention). Plant-based proteins are great and increasingly consumed by those following flexible diets. (Meat-free Mondays, anyone?)
Many vegans and vegetarians don’t want to eat fake meat as their cooking is simply built around plants in their original form, think beans and lentils. I certainly am happy to just eat more plants in their recognisable form, although I do love a good soya yoghurt or an oat cappuccino. But in what has been a game-changer for new plant-based eaters who miss meat, fake meats have gone mainstream. You can already have plant-based burgers in your favourite burger chains. And for those who want to eat meat but are worried about the environmental impact of animal husbandry, which is also problematic because of the incredible amount of arable land taken up by what will become feed for animals, lab-grown meat is coming.
My point is this. There are plant-based alternatives to meat that are versatile and gaining in popularity; nutritionally and culturally. Food is so much more than just fuel. While human adaptability and ingenuity made people enjoy incredibly varied diets around the world, some of which includes insects, unappetising options will struggle to become widespread as a meal ingredient.
Importantly, we have alternatives to meat and we are becoming more educated about them. One reason veganism has gone mainstream is because of the wide range of beautiful, tasty and appetising vegan products that have appeared on supermarket shelves in recent years. If you think vegan cheese is horrible, you haven’t tried some of the incredibly tasty spreadable cheeses made from various nuts. They are healthy and taste even better than some of the traditional well-known cheese. Famous chefs are also creating beautiful and tasty vegan dishes that satisfy eyes and tastebuds. When a new approach to eating becomes easy to access and doesn’t take away from the pleasure of eating it is much easier for it to become a habit. If it also makes you feel virtuous, we have a winner.
If you love fish, sustainable eating might save us from disaster there too. In the UK, for example, you can follow which fish is abundant and which isn’t sustainable to eat. I realised I liked mackerel (smoked) only when it was highlighted as a fish that can be sustainably eaten. In the UK, the most popular Big 5 of cod, salmon, haddock, tuna and prawn are at risk. It is recommended to eat more Cornish hake, handline-caught mackerel, Dover Sole and shellfish. I’d honestly rather eat overall less fish, and more mackerel and less salmon as part of my 20% non-vegan portion, than fried crickets. No matter how well they are seasoned.
We are becoming more informed and intentional about our eating habits. This is great news not just for our health but for sustainable living too. This way we can innovate while preserving various cultures, and keep eating for joy as well as for improved health. Regardless of whether you like curried lentils, pork chops or fried scorpion on a stick for dinner.