Wish To Save The World? Eat Bugs!
Language
Reading Level
Listen to Article
Experts assert that if food were a country, it would rank third behind China and the US as one of the biggest greenhouse gas polluters. The reason is the ever-rising demand for meat. Livestock farming is responsible for 14.5 percent of global methane emissions. While cows are the worse offenders, pigs, sheep, and other animals contribute as well.
Animal husbandry also causes land and water degradation, biodiversity loss, and deforestation. With the world population forecast to rise to 9.8 billion by 2050, things are only looking worse for our already dwindling natural resources. While going vegetarian would undoubtedly help, meat consumption is too ingrained in most western diets to allow for such a drastic, permanent shift. That is why environmentalists are advocating substituting some of the beef, chicken, or pork with delectable bugs!
Insects, which transition from larva to pupa to adult within a matter of months, if not weeks, are ready for consumption much faster than livestock. They also require much less room, use a fraction of the water and food needed for animal livestock, and produce far less greenhouse gas and ammonia.
Of the 1.1 million insect species worldwide, scientists have identified 1,700 as edible. Among them are termites, ants, grasshoppers, crickets, grubs, and earthworms. Just like livestock, each insect has a distinct taste. Termites are tangy and minty, tree worms taste just like pork, and sago grubs are similar to bacon.
While eating bugs might be a new concept for Western Hemisphere residents, over 2 billion people worldwide consume these critters as a regular part of their diet. Besides being delicious, bugs are high in protein, have very few calories, and are free of the saturated fat found in animal meat. Insects are also very versatile. Creative chefs can use them to whip up protein-rich soup stocks, make crunchy baked treats, and even stir-fry a few with their vegetables.
Fortunately, those unable to stomach the thought of cracking open the crispy shell of a tarantula the way they would tear into a Dungeness crab have other choices. They can replace some of their regular protein sources by using cricket flour for baking or select one of the many readymade products, such as pasta and crackers, which incorporate the insect flour. So go ahead and kick trepidation to the curb - both your body and Mother Earth will thank you for it!
Resources: fao.org, davidsuzuki.org, NPR.org
Get the Workbook for this article!
Workbook contains: Article, Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking Questions, Vocabulary in Context (+ answers), Multiple Choice Quiz (+ answers), Parts of Speech Quiz (+ answers), Vocabulary Game (+ answers)Cite Article
Learn Keywords in this Article
783 Comments
- mrtimover 1 yearI think it's yummy and healthy! But really I think I'll pass.
averagelalfanover 1 yearEEwww
preppy-eva6 months👍same
adroit_avimimusover 2 yearsThat's interesting! And I would eat as many bugs as needed if it means saving the world. I think the only reason people don't eat it is because it's BUGS! But if we just forgot they were bugs we would probably unconsciously eat it!
xanerihyfupikyalmost 3 yearsI think that this is important to know how we can help humankind and the Earth. I really like what you wrote, and I will eat bugs if it helps the world.- adroit_avimimusover 2 yearsI agree! I will eat as many bugs as the earth needs me to if it means saving it!
cptrex587almost 3 yearsbugs are gross in my opinion but if I had to eat one I would- cptrex587almost 3 yearsI don't think I'd like to eat bugs but I might
unknown_user14about 3 yearsIf I was to eat one type of bug, I would eat...a worm. It's easy to eat without thinking about it moving in your mouth or anything like that.- unknown_user14about 3 yearsThis is REALLY helpful to the Earth.
wolfy_blueover 3 yearsUm...is there another way to save the world?? I never ate a bug before but I don't want to try it.
talltowerover 3 yearsBut how many bugs would we have to eat?
