Crickets at the table receive the green light from EFSA (European Food Safety Authority), with a view to authorizing their production and sale in the EU as novel food ingredients (Novel foods), pursuant to EU regulation 2015/2283. (1)
House cricket - the third insect species to receive EFSA's favorable scientific opinion, after meal moths (Tenebrius molitor) and locusts (Migratory locust) - has at the same time traditions of consumption and perspectives of importance for human nutrition.
Domestic cricket, traditions of non-EU consumption
Taxonomy di Acheta domesticus L. it is linked to the habit of this insect to colonize homes and other buildings where anthropic activities take place. The domestic cricket is a cosmopolitan insect, widely distributed in Europe, North Africa, Asia, Australia, North America. (2)
The tradition of its consumption as food it refers, in the bibliography cited by the applicant, to various countries in Asia (Thailand, Laos, Cambodia), Africa (Ghana) and Central America (Mexico). Enough to deduce the substantial absence of risks for human health associated with its ingestion.
Domestic cricket, experiences of use in the EU
In Europe, crickets were the protagonists of the first sales authorizations for food use in the most proactive Member States - such as Belgium, Holland and Germany - in the transition phase that accompanied the new EU regulation on novel food (2015/2283), as seen. (3)
In the feed industry, crickets are one of the seven species of insects authorized for use as raw materials, among the few sources of protein of animal origin with an almost non-existent risk of acting as vectors of dangerous pathogens (such as those that lead to the development of spongiform encephalopathies) . (4)
Nutritional values
The composition of crickets is characterized by the presence of proteins, fats and dietary fibers (in the form of chitin). In addition to appreciable quantities of vitamins and minerals. The presence of 'anti-nutritional' factors (ie capable of limiting the digestibility of the food or the absorption of nutrients) is comparable to that of other conventional foods.
All amino acids essential are present in cricket proteins, in amounts similar to or even higher than the values recommended by FAO. The protein content is high, although its actual levels are lower (-11%) than those (15,1% the frozen product, 60,3% the powder) that can be deduced by applying the nitrogen-protein conversion factor 6,25 , 40 (due to the presence of non-protein nitrogen in chitin). The most representative fatty acids are palmitic, oleic and linoleic, with a very similar ratio of saturated, unsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids (~ 30:30:XNUMX).
Allergenicity and microbiology
The proteins in crickets they are similar to those of crustaceans. People with food allergies to crustaceans or otherwise sensitive to them, that is to molluscs and mites, should therefore refrain from consuming foods that contain Acheta domesticus L. With attention to the potential risks of adverse reactions to other allergens, if insects are raised in substrates that contain them.
At the microbiological level, the risk of contamination by pathogens can be controlled by applying good hygiene practices (GHP, GMP) and self-control (HACCP). Thanks also to a heat treatment, the whitening (blanching at> 90 ° C for at least 10 minutes), which precedes drying or freezing. Viruses and parasites that can affect insects, even if lethal for them, are on the other hand harmless to humans.
Crickets at the table, green light from EFSA
EFSA expressed a favorable scientific opinion for the authorization of the use of domestic crickets as food ingredients, in the forms proposed by the applicant (see next paragraph). Observing how they present no health risks for the consumer, nor nutritional disadvantages.
Foods obtained in this way, they can be consumed by all the indicated population groups, from 3 years of age onwards, with the exception of people with food allergies or in any case sensitive to shellfish. Without risk of exposure to unwanted substances (eg. mycotoxins, heavy metals, pesticides) which have been detected at very low or unidentifiable concentrations. Nor to toxic substances that some insects, but not even the domestic cricket, could produce.
novel food with exclusive
The authorization request of the novel foods in question was presented on 17.12.18 by Fair Insect BV, a Dutch consortium of three insect breeders. With regard to whole household crickets - frozen or dried, or in powder form - intended for use as ingredients of various foods such as snack and breakfast cereals, pasta, baked goods, soups, meat products, fermented foods, etc. The evaluation process, which lasted 32 months, largely exceeded the deadlines established by Regulation (EU) 2015/2283.
Fair Insect B.V - acquired in June 2017 by Protix, a group specialized in the production of insects for feed use, thanks to a loan of € 45 million (5) - requested the protection of some specific data relating to production processes and studies carried out on its own products. This will entail the exclusive right for 5 years (in your favor and / or its third party licensees) to the sale in the EU of the related Novel foods, after the European Commission has authorized them in agreement with the representations of the Member States.
Dario Dongo and Andrea Adelmo Della Penna
Footnotes
(1) EFSA NDA Panel et al. (2021). Safety of frozen and dried formulations from whole house crickets (Acheta domesticus) as a Novel food pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2015/2283. EFSA Journal 19(8):6779. doi:10.2903/j.efsa.2021.6779. https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.2903/j.efsa.2021.6779
(2) Dutto et al. (2020). Recent observations of Acheta domesticus (L., 1758) (Orthoptera Gryllidae) in Piedmont (North Western Italy). Bull. Soc. Entomol. Ital. 152 (1): 37-40, https://www.entostudio.it/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Recenti-osservazioni-di-Acheta-domesticus.pdf
(3) Dario Dongo. Insects at the table in the EU. GIFTS (Great Italian Food Trade), one, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/insetti-a-tavola-in-ue
(4) EU Reg. 2017/893 amending Annexes I and IV of Regulation (EC) No. 999/2001 and annexes X, XIV and XV of regulation (EU) no. 142/2011 regarding the provisions on animal proteins. EUR-Lex, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2017/893/oj
(5) Protix (2017). Protix acquires Fair Insects and diversifies towards mealworm, cricket and locusts. Conference Press, https://protix.eu/wp-content/uploads/Press-release-2017-Fair-Insects.pdf
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
Graduated in Food Technologies and Biotechnologies, qualified food technologist, he follows the research and development area. With particular regard to European research projects (in Horizon 2020, PRIMA) where the FARE division of WIISE Srl, a benefit company, participates.
