Abstract
Although two billion people already eat insects in the world and the benefits of edible insects are well known, these ‘green’ sources of protein are neither treated as conventional food products nor widely incorporated into Western diets. Using a school-based investigation surveying 161 children, aged 6–15, and 114 of their parents in London, and an online consumer survey with mainly British and French consumers (N = 1,020), this research provides insights into the potential of the insect market in the West. This work supports the idea that incorporating insect food into our diets makes not only environmental but also business sense. A nonnegligible segment of the population surveyed is willing to pay for mealworm minced meat and young children and pre-teens could represent a substantial market segment, as yet unexplored. This analysis points to multiple marketing strategies, such as early exposure, education, reducing the visibility of insect parts, celebrity endorsement, or peer-to-peer marketing, all of which could facilitate the adoption of insect food in the ‘mainstream’ arena, according to the consumer segment being targeted. Generalizations from these results are restricted to an educated and youthful subset of the potential consumer pool and further work remains to understand the patterns of Western consumer acceptance for the range of insect foods.
Highlights
Two billion people already eat insects in the world and the benefits of edible insects are well known, these ‘green’ sources of protein are neither treated as conventional food products nor widely incorporated into Western diets
The contribution that insects make to food security in Africa, Asia, and South America has been documented, but in the 20th century, little attention was paid to the role they could play as protein contributors in the Western world (Illgner and Nel 2000)
Where Are the Opportunities? The Effects of Age, Affluence, Nationality, and Gender Supporting the hypothesis that children may be more likely to accept insect food, the study in schools may indicate that there is a ‘sweet spot’ age for insect marketing
Summary
Two billion people already eat insects in the world and the benefits of edible insects are well known, these ‘green’ sources of protein are neither treated as conventional food products nor widely incorporated into Western diets. A nonnegligible segment of the population surveyed is willing to pay for mealworm minced meat and young children and pre-teens could represent a substantial market segment, as yet unexplored This analysis points to multiple marketing strategies, such as early exposure, education, reducing the visibility of insect parts, celebrity endorsement, or peer-to-peer marketing, all of which could facilitate the adoption of insect food in the ‘mainstream’ arena, according to the consumer segment being targeted. Besides providing a high-protein food source, insect food may be useful in tackling the most common micronutrient deficiencies in developed countries: iron, vitamin A, and zinc; making insects part of our dietary patterns could be expected to result in substantial public health savings (Müller and Krawinkel 2005, Bates et al 2012, Finke 2013)
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