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Bah, humbug! How insects could become the backbone of your Christmas dinner | Science & Tech News


Whether it’s the traditional turkey or the meatless roasted chestnuts, there’s a lot that goes into making a delicious Christmas dinner.

But while competition at your local supermarket or butcher shop is always high ahead of the festive season, this year it’s down amid warning of an impending food supply crisis in the UK.

Egg shortages may be just the beginning, says farmers – so while your much-anticipated Christmas dinner may avoid the impending, Easter lunch may be out of luck. so.

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Agricultural Union warns of food prices

Thankfully, there’s a potential solution all around us – some of them crawling under our feet, others buzzing above our heads.

And before you say “bah, humbug,” I’m not suggesting you replace your carefully prepared baking with insects.

Better Origin, based in Cambridge, wants to make food waste part of the supply chain. According to United Nations estimates, 17% of global food production is thrown away, there is a lot of work to be done.

This is where the insects come in: feeding them waste can turn them into a nutritious substitute for the carbon-intensive soybeans and grains commonly used to feed livestock.

“The way to look at this is insect protein,” said Fotis Fotiadis, executive director of Better Origin.

“The reason it’s great and nutritious is because their amino acid composition is very similar to meat. That could replace any form of animal protein in other parts of the food supply chain.”

After the flies have been filled with leftovers, they are placed on a plate for the hens to snack on.
Picture:
After the flies have been filled with leftovers, they are placed on a plate for the hens to snack on.

How does this new supply chain work?

The ethos of the supply chain is to use technology to mimic nature, converting waste back into food.

While you may not dream of eating a rotten apple, in the wild it can make its way back up the food chain – either by being consumed as-is or by being broken down and re-accumulated by bacteria.

“This system is not sustainable or secure – as demonstrated by the pandemic and Russian Invasion” said Mr Fotiadis.

“We need to […] from linear to circular. If waste becomes part of the input, you become more independent.”

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Insects that replace soybeans and grains in hens' diets
Picture:
Insects replace soybeans and grains in hens’ diets

Better Origin has developed what it describes as an “automated factory in a shipping bin,” with waste and insects stored at one end for them to consume. Once built, they can be fed to animals.

There was one real-world example, when Morrisons launched a line of “carbon-neutral eggs” by feeding hens on his farm with waste-fed black soldier fly larvae.

“It’s a win-win for everyone in the supply chain,” said Mr. Fotiadis, with AI-driven algorithms used to fully automate the internal feeding process. containers.

Morrisons has been provided with 10 “insect mini-farms”, which are estimated to save about 3,000 tonnes of food waste and 2,810 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually.

Read more:
Humanity ‘regards nature as a toilet’
Discover the world’s oldest DNA ‘game changer’

Storage bins like these are where the magic happens
Picture:
Storage bins like these are where the ‘magic’ happens

How will it go beyond the egg?

Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither is your insect-powered Christmas dinner (unless you just eat bugs instead of grilling, I guess).

Better Origin is working with regulators to expand the number of foods insects can eat, beyond existing fruit, vegetables and bread waste.

The ambition is to repeat the “insect protein” feeding strategy to other animals, and the company’s plan has support from the University of Cambridge.

So while you may never want “all decorations” included crickets, flies and mealwormsit may not be long before they play a major role in bringing your usual favorites to the dinner table.

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