Insects as Protein | Nutrition

A growing population, coupled with diminishing natural resources, means the race is on to find alternative sources of nutrition. One such source is insects. Already used in cuisines around the world, insects are high in protein and amino acids. They also have a major advantage in that – with an ever-shrinking supply of agricultural land –  cultivating them requires no fertile land.

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Insect protein statistics

10 - 15

Percentage

Of our daily energy intake should come from protein

2000

Species

Of insect are already used in food products.

36

Times

The number of people who can be fed with insects given 100 kg of feed compared to cattle given the same amount.

10 - 15

Percentage

Of our daily energy intake should come from protein

2000

Species

Of insect are already used in food products.

36

Times

The number of people who can be fed with insects given 100 kg of feed compared to cattle given the same amount.

Industrial-scale production

We are constantly looking to develop economically viable and scalable options for alternative protein sources, and the potential for insects is huge. One kilo of insect protein can be produced on just a single square meter of land, and insects are also incredibly efficient when it comes to converting feed into protein. Just two kilos of feed are needed to build up a kilo of insect mass. And not only do insects use waste as feed, they are a food source for many animals, creating a "virtuous circle" of recycling.

Fly larvae and mealworms are easy to breed and can be fed with organic waste. One particular focus is on the larvae of the black soldier fly, the ability of which to transform organic waste into high-quality protein has led to it being called the 'queen of waste transformation’.

Bühler Insect Technology Solutions is a major partnership with Protix, one of the most advanced insect-rearing companies in the world with more than a decade of experience. The partnership will provide industrial-scale solutions for rearing and processing insects for food and animal feed customers around the world. The focus will be on feedstock processing, larvae rearing and processing, separating and extracting proteins and lipids, and the production of optimum quality insect ingredients.

The fact that we are now producing protein flour, lipids and fertilizers based on insects, and doing so on an industrial scale, is something new. You can, perhaps, imagine the beginnings of modern mills 150 years ago occurring in a similar way.

Andreas Aepli,
CEO, Bühler Insect Technology Solutions