Edible forest insects: exploring new horizons and
traditional practices
Humans have consumed insects for thousands of years – in some cases as emergency food, in
other circumstances as a staple, and in still other instances as delicacies. Estimates of the
number of insect species that are consumed by humans vary, but worldwide at least 1 400
species have been recorded as human food. In modern times, entomophagy (the practice of
eating insects) has declined in many societies, and has often been shunned as old-fashioned,
dirty or unhealthy. Yet, among various cultures scattered throughout the world, insects remain
a vital and preferred food and an essential source of protein, fat, minerals and vitamins. For
some members of the rapidly growing upper and middle classes of urban society in some
developing countries, insects are “nostalgia food”, reminding them of earlier, simpler days in
the rural countryside.