That being said I'm not sure who these insect burgers are for, or what problem they solve. If you acknowledge that diet is big part of climate change solutions, then why not go directly to plant-based burgers? It's not like crickets have anything in common with red meat in any way.

My cynical take is that it's just a way to "do the right thing" without agreeing with the vegans. Gotta eat dead animals.

[–] argv_minus_one 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

Honestly, I foresee this angering people a lot more than plant-based food would.

Eating plants is normal, and even meat-eaters eat plenty of plants. Most of the ingredients of a conventional burger—the bun, the lettuce, etc—are plant-based. No surprise, then, that veggie burgers have gained some traction in the market.

Eating bugs is another story entirely. There are very few cultures in which that is considered anything but a desperate last resort when literally no other food is available. Tell most people to eat something made out of bugs, and they'll take it as an insult; that you're insinuating that they're too poor to afford literally anything else.

[–] TheBurlapBandit 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I thought there were quite a few cultures that eat bugs.

[–] VoxAdActa 2 points 1 year ago

There are. Ignoring, for the moment, that lobster and shrimp are sea-bugs that billions of people eat without complaint, there are plenty of North American cultures that readily incorporated bugs into their daily diets. Here's a scholarly article on the topic (pdf warning)

I was even lucky enough to meet an Oneida man who gave me a recipe for cooking may/june beetles at a bonfire. They taste a lot like shrimp.

(The recipe: Catch a few beetles, shake them up in your hand to stun them, then toss them onto one of the rocks at the edge of the fire. Wait until they make a popcorn-like "pop" noise. If you like them less crunchy, you can peel off the wings before you eat them.)

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