By Donna Giachetti
These days, eating bugs is in the news more often than ever before. Even the dreaded murder hornets, it seems, are a delicacy in parts of the world! I’m always delighted when science intersects with popular culture, and edible bugs are definitely one of those instances.
Most of us think of insect eating as having a certain “ick” factor. But consider this statistic: More than 1,000 insects are known to be eaten by choice around the world, in 80% of nations. Wow. You have to believe 80% of our world’s nations must be onto something legitimate… and delicious.
In an interview with The Guardian, Professor Arnold van Huis, an entomologist at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, points out, “”Most of the world already eats insects. It is only in the western world that we don’t. Psychologically we have a problem with it. I don’t know why, as we eat shrimps, which are very comparable.”
Good point, Professor!
Bring Bugs into Your Lessons!
Why not help your students explore entomophagy (the practice of eating bugs)? This excellent video and lesson on the TEDEd site makes a compelling case for dining on insects. You might want to start your students off with the video below.
Doing research for this blog, I quickly devoured this Insect Bug Eating Guide from Popular Science. Give it a read! I’ve already resolved to order some cricket flour online and make my first buggy baked goods soon. (I probably won’t tell my family about the secret ingredients…)
Aside from being a basic food source for billions of people around the globe, bugs for dinner is environmentally positive in so many different ways. Talk about sustainability! Plus, they’re an excellent source of iron, calcium, zinc, B12, and Omega 3 along with being a pre-biotic fiber.
Now, about those murder hornets (more accurately known as Asian giant hornets)… if you don’t believe they’ve been a cuisine delicacy for years, check out these recipes for murder hornet aperitifs, popcorn, appetizers, and more!
Speaking of Bugs…
At Educational Innovations, edible bugs aren’t a new trend. We’ve been selling our Chocolate Covered Insects, crunchy Crick-ettes (in three different flavors!), and Larvets Worm Snax for years, with thousands of happy customers.
Chocolate Covered Insects 
Larvets Snax 
Crick-ettes
Do you have a sweet tooth? We’re on it. Our Cricket and Larva Licket Lollipops and Scorpion Lollipops are all perennial best sellers! (By the way, our Larva Lollipop made a surprise appearance in this video, which shares a bunch of recipes and reasons to become an entomophagist.)
Last but certainly not least, there’s our Science You Can Eat bundle. This one’s got a gastronomical galaxy of tasty treats (insect and otherwise).
In other words, we’ve helped lots of folks eat lots of bugs. And we even have a sticker to prove it!
