LET THEM EAT BUGS: European Commission Approves Some Insects for Human Consumption
Posted on 12/18/2021
“Let them eat cake” is the most famous quote attributed to Marie-Antoinette, the Queen of France during the French Revolution.
As ESG-focused investors take on the meat industry, while the cost of beef and chicken go up, European consumers could likely start seeing bug and insect food offerings. In Europe, most insect protein being manufactured has been for pets and as feed.
In November 2021, the European Commission authorized migratory locust (Locusta migratoria) as a novel food to be placed on the market. In July 2020, the EC approved dried yellow mealworms (Tenebrio molitor). There was also approval for dried, ground, and frozen house cricket (Acheta domesticus) for the novel food designation. Despite a disturbing image of someone eating a giant grub, someone would likely be consuming insect protein as a food ingredient. Food manufacturers are always on the lookout for fillers and cheaper sources of protein. Novel foods can only be authorized if they do not pose any risk to human health. The actions by the EC resulted from applications submitted by the Dutch company Fair Insects B.V. (a Protix company) on December 28, 2018. Founded in 2009, Protix is a multinational manufacturer and supplier of insect ingredients for animal feed and for human consumption. In October 2017, Protix acquired Fair Insects, a company focused on breeding insects for human consumption. Protix has raised millions from Rabobank Group, AquaSpark, private investors, and the Dutch government-backed Brabant Development Agency (Brabantse Ontwikkelings Maatschappij).
Institutional investors have been allocating capital to alternative protein strategies. Most of the capital has been geared toward vegan or plant-based protein companies like Beyond Meat and Impossible. Bpifrance is an investors in Ÿnsect, a French insect farming startup. Founded in 2011, Ÿnsect has raised over US$ 160 million since inception. Ÿnsect is focused on the pet market for now, farming mealworms to produce ingredients for fish feed, pet food, and crop fertilizers.
The International Platform of Insects for Food and Feed is an E.U. non-profit organization that is based in Brussels which represents the interests of the insect production.