I have just sent #5 of Bugburgers newsletter. You find the latest edition here >> and copies of two of the stories below!
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Hargols grasshopper meat (photo: Hargol)
Hargol – kosher grasshoppers are made into meat
It’s been an interesting year for Israeli insect startup Hargol. In April 2020 they secured 3 million dollars in funding. In February this year they received an official approval of its farms and grasshoppers as kosher! And recently they presented a new meat product combining grasshopper and chicken meat into a product that is similar to red meat. According to co-founder and CEO Dror Tamir adding the grasshoppers to chicken meat have several advantages:
1. A boost in protein and other essential nutrients.
2. A variety of health benefits.
3. Reduced footprint.
4. Essential functionality: The grasshoppers make the meat red. The taste becomes meatier. Better binding of water and fat, making the products juicier. And the grasshoppers act as an emulsifier, binding the ingredients with no additional ingredients or processing.
Dror tells Bugburger that they are also working on a version without chicken, using plants.
Being officially kosher is of course important for an Israeli company, and Dror is proud to say that Hargol now is the first and only kosher insect farm in over 2000 years.
That grasshoppers are mentioned in the Torah, and subsequently in the Old testament, as food that is okay to eat was a reason for choosing grasshoppers when starting Hargol. It’s also been used in selling grasshopper protein under the brand Biblical Protein!
Great scientific knowledge about edible insects for free!
Yes, eating insects has a long tradition in big parts of the world. But farming edible insects (except silkworms, bees and cochineal) is a pretty new concept, and doing research on edible insects and farming is even newer. The Journal of Insects as Food and Feed, edited by Arnold van Huis, plays an important role pushing the latest research in the area.
I am extremely grateful that the latest articles have been posted online and are free to access. This is an important source of information for people planning to set up farms, people who want to know more on nutrients, welfare of farmed insects, allergens, etc etc.
There is even an article about “new packaged food products containing insects as an ingredient”, that I have contributed to (written by Massimo Reveberi).
You find a list of the articles here >>
Världens bästa bok om ätbara insekter?Kan du läsa svenska? Grattis då kan du läsa:
Äta insekter: Entomaten och det stora proteinskiftet. Den går att köpa i vanliga bokhandlar, hos förlaget, på Adlibris och Bokus. Läs mer om boken och köpställen här!