One of the most interesting classes from GRS this year was the class where we got a chance to try bugs! A fellow classmate brought in a few different live insects to class, such as crickets and meal worms. He gave the class a presentation on why he started eating bugs, as well as other details such as how to prepare them. Although I heard it only from my dad before as a joke, it was interesting to here that bugs indeed were a good source of protein! Some of the ideas I found interesting was how the bugs were killed. According to our classmate, the insects do not have an advanced nervous system, which means that they are not able to feel pain. To kill the bugs, they are simply put in the freezer until they are frozen to death. This also imitates nature apparently, during the winter season. In this way, eating bugs for protein is also deemed to be a more ethical way of eating protein without eating meat. However, I believe it is important to continue researching the ethics behind eating insects. While studies currently show that they do not have an advanced nervous system, I believe this field of study should still be continued in case we find that insects do in fact have a more advanced nervous system than we thought.

I had also heard some of these ideas before from a few LFS classes and TED talk speakers. Many people have said that insects have played and continue to play a large role in many communities traditionally. However, with more globalization and increasing wealth, many people are looking towards eating more meats as this is often considered a luxury food. As well, many North Americans are not familiar with the idea of eating insects at all. I personally have never encountered any food places that sell insects in Canada or the US for instance. While insects in food seems like a radical idea here, I believe it is something that should be further looked into as there seems also to be various health benefits, such as insects being a low fat alternative for protein, and sustainability benefits, such as insects requiring low inputs.

Our classmate brought in samples of foods with insects to try. One of them was celery with a meal worm spread on it and the other was a almost a chocolate coconut truffle ball with insect powder in it. I personally tried the chocolate ball which was very tasty, though I did not try the celery and meal worms, mainly because I really do not enjoy eating celery. I found the experience of trying the foods very interesting. I was initially very nervous to try the chocolate ball at first because I had never had any foods which intentionally had insects in it. However, with coaxing from my friends around me, I was able to round up the nerves to try it, which I am glad I did.

Overall, the experience was a very positive experience. Although I would still likely be hesitant to try other foods with insects, I would still like to try. Insects seems to be a growing market and I believe it would be a very interesting field to pursue in the future.