Mmmm delicious: Canada is raising crickets as a source of protein
Protein is important for a healthy diet and now Canada is looking to crickets as an environmentally friendly source for Canadians.
The federal government is investing up to $8.5 million to support the building of a commercial facility to produce cricket protein in London, Ontario.
Nutritionally, crickets are rich in protein and contain the vitamins A, B, C, D, E, and K. All parts of crickets are edible, the federal government said in a news release.
With funding under the AgriInnovate Program, Aspire will use the latest smart technology to create the ideal growing conditions for crickets at its Ontario facility.
It is set to grow billions of crickets at a time, producing a nutrient-rich protein for premium health food and pet markets.
Aspire’s goal to tackle global food scarcity led to its focus on edible insect production, which can provide high volumes of nutritious food with a low environmental footprint.
Food-grade processing of insects is still relatively new for Canadian agriculture, according to the federal government.
However, alternative sources of protein such as insects provide an opportunity to meet global demand for food by using less water, energy, and space and emitting significantly less greenhouse gas emissions during the production stage.
So move over chicken and beef, cricket protein is coming in hot!
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