More insectivorous Western society

[Melvin Loh]

As a guy who's cooked up a grasshopper myself on a couple occasions (maniacal laugh- just had 1 tonight, too- maniacal laugh), what sorta POD would be necessary for Western society to be more amenable to the idea of consuming insects such as grasshoppers/locusts as a part of standard cuisine ? Ppl in Thailand and among southwestern native American tribes eat roast grasshoppers as part of their diet, and so AFAIK did the lower-class ancient Greeks and Romans, while certain parts of China have fried scorpions and roast silkworm larvae as local delicacies, but among many in Western society the idea of consuming insects is abhorrent. What type of hist event or progression could enable such a perspective to be changed ? Like say if American settlers adopted the Indians' grasshopper consumption as part of their diet too ?

[basileus]

If the whole of mankind should adopt insect eating, this would basically solve the hunger problem throughout the world. I think even the cost of producing this kind of food would be so low that it could be freely distributed even in remote areas, in case of extreme need, differently from now.

[Norman]

SOunds good (I think) does it give you the necessary protien? Is it easier of more diffiult to raise a pound of chicken or a pound of locust larvae?

[NapoleonXIV]

Originally Posted by basileus

If the whole of mankind should adopt insect eating, this would basically solve the hunger problem throughout the world. I think even the cost of producing this kind of food would be so low that it could be freely distributed even in remote areas, in case of extreme need, differently from now.

Are you sure of this? I know that most insects are very protein rich and that just one species of insect (ants) exceeds all humankind in biomass. (Which, btw, makes them the most successful species on earth) OTOH I have one question, if insescts are so good why do locusts still ravage many parts of the Earth and how did they ever get started doing so? After they eat the crops why did/don't we simply eat them

[DuQuense]

IF you look you'll see that most of the Incest eaters [chocolate covered ants, yum yum] come from Protein deprived cultures. IF they had some large cattle ranchs maybe Chinese wouldn't eat Locusts. OTOH if the US didn't have cattle ranches maybe we would.

[David Howery]

Incest eaters? that is the most bizarre typo I've seen yet

[DominusNovus]

Originally Posted by David Howery

Incest eaters? that is the most bizarre typo I've seen yet

FOREWARNING: The following is a sick sick joke.
Oh, you should've seen this thread on this incest forum. Some guy made the hilarious typo of insect. Oh man, the confusion that created was priceless.

Ahem. Not that I'm in to that sort of thing...
AFTWARNING(fore and aft, get it?): The preceding was a sick sick joke.

I couldn't help myself. Oh, and about eating insects solving the world's hunger problems, aren't they usually eaten in third world countries anyway? Doesn't look like they're making much of a dent...

[carlton_bach]

I'm not sure eating insects would make that much of a dent prior to the invention of modern processing methods as the types of insects easiest to raise/produce are garbage-eaters - not the ones most folks like to eat. However, I could easily see the West becoming more amenablwe to the idea (or rather, staying that way).

1) you'd need more of a culinary survival from the Ancient world. Maybe we could posit a somewhat more literate, Romanised Germanic civilisation that is open to Graeco-Roman influence in terms of eating locusts and such. A more developed appetite foir seafood among the new rulers would be enough for starters, I'd say. Ever eaten shrimp?

2) then you'd need some kind of insect species in Europe that offers itself to culinary purposes. Most European species are rather small and not fleshy enough, and their maggots are tiny. If you could get something big and appetising, say shrimp-sized, in, that could do the trick.

One species on the menu is enough. Experimentation and cultural contact will carry it on. Notice how Westerners eat spider crabs and giant shrimps?

[Straha]

as global warming and desertification become worse as the 21st century goes on this will happen because of necessity. Even Once they've restored the climate to its current levels a few centuries into the future, eating insects will be ingrained. AFAIK they have insect resteraunts in some of the big cities now so its more of time before it happens.

now on how to get in into an ATL... The 70's were a time of openness in cooking so have some snackmaker make fried grasshoppers,raosted termites and chocolate covered ants popular. The snacks would be popular both because of the "ICK" factor and the exoticness. If the USA anexxed mexico in 1848 we would see the mexican idea of cricket eating spreading north(same with the draka in africa in the DTL). Or go the easy wayout and have the idea of eating locusts appear in the dustbowl.

[Xen]

Incest Eaters? *LOL* Good God Man thats the funniest typo ive read

[Straha]

heh its a freudian slip

[DuQuense]

Very funny--It was to laugh--ha ha ha
-----------------------------------------------------
9 out of ten people like chocolate; the tenth is a lair.