Finland Bakery Sells Dried Cricket Bread, Insect-Based Food Has More Protein Than Regular Wheat Loaf
On Thursday, November 23, Finland’s Frazer Bakeries made the first dried cricket bread in the world available to consumers. The insect-based bread’s main ingredients include flour produced from ground crickets, wheat flour, and seeds. There are approximately 70 crickets in each load of bread, and it costs more than a regular loaf of wheat bread.
The movement towards a more humane treatment of animals while searching for alternative food sources led to the suggestion of using insects as a food source. Several countries in the Western hemisphere pushed through with this recommendation. Finland was among the six countries in Europe which allowed insect farming and advertising as an alternative food base. Countries that passed a similar law include Austria, Belgium, Britain, Denmark, and the Netherlands.
Frazer Bakeries Head of Innovation Juhani Sibakov started the development of their dried cricked bread last summer. However, the bakery had to wait until Finland approved the legislation before they could launch their new product. Sibakov has high hopes for the bakery’s new product.
“It offers consumers with a good protein source and also gives them an easy way to familiarize themselves with insect-based food.”
The dried cricket bread costs 3.9 euros -this is more expensive than the regular wheat bread which costs from 2 to 3 euros. The bread made using the flour from dried crickets contains more protein than the regular wheat bread. As for the taste of the cricket bread, one consumer revealed it tastes just like regular bread.
Marinating crickets for dinnertime awesome. #crickets #entomophagy #entomo #entomovegan #foodporn #edibleinsects pic.twitter.com/wHTByWEHz4
— Gastrobug (@gastrobug) September 5, 2016
As reported by Reuters, the bakery plans to sell the dried cricket bread in all of 47 stores located all over the country next year. For now, they need to limit the availability of the bread to 11 bakeries located in Finland’s capital, Helsinki due to insufficient supply of crickets. The bakery’s imports the cricket flour used in their bread from the Netherlands. However, they are also searching for local suppliers.
If Frazer succeeds in mass-producing their dried cricket bread, it will be a huge milestone for countries who approved the legislation for insect-based food. Edible bugs gained popularity among individuals on a gluten-free diet and those who crusade to protect the environment. Compared to raising animals for food, farming insects as a food source requires a lesser land area, water resource, and feeds. Given the limited supply of food resources and forecasted growth of insect farming, Finland’s dried cricket bread provides a glimpse of future food products on the market.
[Featured Image by Photo Fun/ Shutterstock]
