Edible Insects Are Coming To A Menu Near You

Around the world and mainly in Asia, insects are a key part of the diet of up to two billion people. Farming insects is a fraction of the cost of producing beef, pork and poultry. According to United Nations' Food & Agriculture Organization data published by Bloomberg, producing a kilogram of crickets requires less than a fifth of the feed that a cow would eat to produce the same amount of beef. Insects also negate the need for antibiotics, growth hormones and require far less water than conventional livestock.

As a result, insect farming has become more common and with nearly 2,000 different species edible, expect them to come to a menu near you in the not too distant future. By 2023, the value of the global edible insect market is expected to triple and its value will climb from $44 million to $154 million in the U.S. alone by 2023. As can be seen by the following map, insect farming has huge potential across much of the world.