Ask HN: Would you eat insects?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11277075

by aharonovich • 10 years ago

3 5 10 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

After the cricket bars company raised significant capital I started thinking, why won't most people eat insects?

hendekagon• 10 years ago

In the last year I have noticed more news articles about this subject. Why this is, I don't know.

Nope. Nope, nope, nope. I will not eat insects or worms because they are associated with disease and death and it makes me want to throw up. There's nothing wrong with that, it's a natural instinct. You might argue that native Australians eat grubs etc, but they are/were living in one of the harshest environments on Earth, at the limits of survival. You will eat anything to survive.

A mostly vegetarian or vegan diet with occasional meat can supply all the nutrients one needs, without the vomit-inducing associations.

Let that be the end of it.

wingerlang• 10 years ago

I will not eat insects or worms because they are associated with disease and death

Do most people associate them with this? I certainly don't.

duncan_bayne• 10 years ago

No idea myself. I've eaten insects a couple of times, and it didn't seem like a big deal.

Now, spiders on the other hand, hell no, I'd rather starve.

drallison• 10 years ago

For the curious, a coffee-table book, a cookbook, and a memoir:

http://www.amazon.com/Man-Eating-Bugs-Science-Insects/dp/098...

http://www.amazon.com/The-Eat-Bug-Cookbook-Revised/dp/160774...

http://www.amazon.com/Edible-Adventure-Eating-Insects-Planet...

JacobAldridge• 10 years ago

Why will most Westerners eat cow, but not horse? Cultural norms.

Me - I'll try anything once, more or less. I've eaten worms, scorpions, and ants at various points in my life - you really need them in quantity to make it worthwhile as a dining experience. But I've also eaten zebra, crocodile, kangaroo, moose, and a lot of people would balk at those. Thinking about it, I'd have no issues eating cat but would be more reluctant to eat dog. Insects? No problems, and given their much higher ratio of protein and efficient growth (compared to most domestic livestock), I hope they become more 'normal' in the future.

Ask HN: Would you eat insects?

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