Europe adds mealworms to the menu
Dried yellow mealworms soon could be hitting supermarket shelves and restaurants across Europe.
The European Union's 27 nations gave the greenlight Tuesday to a proposal to put the Tenebrio molitor beetle's larvae on the market as a “novel food.”
The move came after the EU'S food safety agency published a scientific opinion that concluded worms were safe to eat. Researchers said the worms, either eaten whole or in powdered form, are a protein-rich snack or an ingredient for other foods.
Allergic reactions may occur for people with pre-existing allergies to crustaceans and dust mites, the commission said.
Insects as food represent a very small market but EU officials said breeding them for food could have environmental benefits. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization calls insects “a healthy and highly nutritious food source.”