Economy

Insects on the plate? No thank you. The import in Italy collapses by 30% in 2024

Final insect tests, according to market numbers. In larvae, grasshoppers and similar in the plate the Italians say no. The import is falling by 30% in Italy in 2024 2023). The latest arrival is the whole dust of whole larvae of yellow worms of the flour, treated with UV rays, admitted two weeks ago to produce pasta, bread and cakes in the countries of the Union. Therefore, more and more space for “new”, super protein and less environmental impact foods. By 2027 a 745 billion dollar turnover is estimated. But the numbers show that insects & co does not like, in Italy.

According to a Coldiretti projection on Istat data, the imports of edible insects collapsed by 30% in 2024, going from 17,600 kilograms of 2023 to 11,500 last year. Insects are considered a protein food with a high nutritional and sustainable value. To obtain a kilo of weight, two kilos of feed is enough, against the eight necessary for the cattle. In addition, less water and space are needed to breed them and less greenhouse gas emissions are produced. But Italian consumers say no thanks. 78% of Italians are contrary to the use of edible insects, also in the form of flour (notorous investigation). The disgust has the best.

One of the most discussed aspects concerns food safety. Most insect products come from non-EU countries, such as Vietnam, Thailand and China, at the top of the European rankings for health-related health alarms. European and Italian legislation obliges to close checks and clearly indicate the presence of insects between the ingredients, to protect consumers. But this is not enough to reassure consumers it seems.

Insects are part of new foods that a European regulation of 2018 defines as all those foods not consumed to a significant extent in the union before May 15, 1997. These are insects, jellyfish, non -null, larvae, plankton, Krill oil. To be marketed in Europe, “novel food” must receive an authorization from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which evaluates its impact on health. Currently, four species of insects have been approved for human consumption: the domestic cricket, the yellow larva of flour, the migratory locust and the worm of the minor flour.

Some countries, such as Belgium and Holland, have already successfully experienced their insertion into consumer food products. But in Italy insects and “novel food” do not break through. The collapse of imports is clear: rejected. For now.