Insects can help tackle food Insecurity

In recent times, the use of insects as food and feed has probably become one of the most exciting topics in entomology. While it is reported that over 2,000 species are known to be edible globally, consumption of edible insects in Kenya is gradually being embraced.

In their recent publication on “Contribution to the knowledge of entomophagy in Africa”, Dr. Sunday Ekesi and Saliou Niassy from icipe and University of Pretoria respectively cited that the use of insects as food is being advocated for due to their high nutrient composition, high   feed conversion efficiencies, organic wastes conversion, the lower requirements for land and water, lower emissions of greenhouse gases and the fact that they have a significant role to play in today’s debate surrounding food and nutritional security.