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After grubs and locusts, we will also eat crickets. The Acheta domesticus, the harmless house cricket, is about to arrive on our tables. The green light for its trade comes from the European Union, which has authorized its placing on the market as a new food, in the form of a partially defatted powder.
The steps towards the green light
On 8 July 2020, the Commission had asked the European Food Safety Authority to carry out an assessment on the matter and on 23 March 2022, EFSA adopted a scientific opinion on the safety of partially defatted powder of Acheta domesticus intero, which new food. The provision was published in the Community Official Journal. And for a period of five years, starting from the date of entry into force of this regulation, 24 January 2023, it is specified in the provision, only the company Cricket One Co. Ltd is authorized to place the new food on the Union market, unless a subsequent applicant obtains an authorization for that food.
Where can cricket powder be used
The European Union has approved the use of this powder in various foods, including bread, crackers, bread sticks, cereal bars, biscuits, filled and unfilled pasta dry products, sauces, of legumes and vegetables, in pizza, pasta products, whey powder, meat substitute products, soups or even beer-like drinks, chocolate products, snacks other than crisps and in meat preparations, intended for the general population.
Coldiretti/Ixe: «54% Italians against insects at the table»
But “the great majority of Italians”, says Coldiretti, “would never bring insects to the table, considered extraneous to the national food culture”. According to a Coldiretti/Ixe survey, «54% of Italians are really against insects at the table, while 24% are indifferent, 16% are in favor and 6% do not respond». Filiera Italia also follows the same line: «Those with a desire for the exotic can eat insects, but it is a game of bad faith to promote them for a sustainable diet as an alternative to ours» says Luigi Scordamaglia, managing director of Filiera Italia. A risky if not downright dangerous choice, on the other hand, for the vice president of the Chamber Environment Commission, Francesco Battistoni, who underlines: «the same Commission has reserved the right to carry out further analyzes and insights into the possible risks associated with any adverse nutritional effects contained in the new food”.
The EU regulation on “novel foods”
The marketing of insects for food is made possible in Europe by the entry into force of the EU regulation on “novel foods” on 1 January 2018, which allows whole insects to be recognized both as new foods and as traditional products from third countries. At the moment, the EU has already authorized for sale, as food to bring to the table, in addition to domestic crickets (Acheta domesticus), the yellow larva of the flour (Tenebrio molitor) and the migratory locust.
