Entomophagy: Food Industry
ENTOMOPHAGY
The word ‘entomophagy’ comes from the Greek ἔντομον: éntomon, "insect", and φᾰγεῖν: phagein, "to eat" is the consumption of insects as food. This term applies specifically to humans. Any other animal that eats insects are referred to as insectivore (Center for Invasive Species Research, University of California, n.d.).
Throughout my childhood and most of my adult life, I have thought of eating bugs as a disgusting and revolting idea. It was not until I was in my mid-twenties that I tried eating fried crickets. I was in Thailand on orders with the United States Marine Corps. Granted, there was a stupid bet and plenty of alcohol involved, but I ate a handful of crickets. They tasted slightly salty. I remember it being almost like eating a peanut or crispy piece of popcorn. At that moment, I was converted to entomophagy. At that time, I did not know that was a fancy word for bug eating. I have been eating bugs ever since. Why did I not start earlier in life? What caused my two decade long knee jerk revulsion to the idea of consuming that which is a staple for almost eighty percent of the planet?
The leadership issue here is the birth of a new industry or the re-birth of an old idea. The major difference between leaders and managers is that managers do things right; whereas, leaders do the right thing (J. Vinson, personal communication, February 8, 2014). It is time for us to do the right thing by bringing an affordable, nutritious and delicious food to the American table. The monetary benefits are both tangible and intangible. Directly, we can see cost savings in the form of more efficient land use, vertical farming, and reduced cost of goods. The list goes on. Indirectly, we will see the average citizen being able to farm at home, reduce their personal costs for food, and increase their levels of health. By just concentrating on the last idea, we can easily see how that would quickly translate into a
The word ‘entomophagy’ comes from the Greek ἔντομον: éntomon, "insect", and φᾰγεῖν: phagein, "to eat" is the consumption of insects as food. This term applies specifically to humans. Any other animal that eats insects are referred to as insectivore (Center for Invasive Species Research, University of California, n.d.).
Throughout my childhood and most of my adult life, I have thought of eating bugs as a disgusting and revolting idea. It was not until I was in my mid-twenties that I tried eating fried crickets. I was in Thailand on orders with the United States Marine Corps. Granted, there was a stupid bet and plenty of alcohol involved, but I ate a handful of crickets. They tasted slightly salty. I remember it being almost like eating a peanut or crispy piece of popcorn. At that moment, I was converted to entomophagy. At that time, I did not know that was a fancy word for bug eating. I have been eating bugs ever since. Why did I not start earlier in life? What caused my two decade long knee jerk revulsion to the idea of consuming that which is a staple for almost eighty percent of the planet?
The leadership issue here is the birth of a new industry or the re-birth of an old idea. The major difference between leaders and managers is that managers do things right; whereas, leaders do the right thing (J. Vinson, personal communication, February 8, 2014). It is time for us to do the right thing by bringing an affordable, nutritious and delicious food to the American table. The monetary benefits are both tangible and intangible. Directly, we can see cost savings in the form of more efficient land use, vertical farming, and reduced cost of goods. The list goes on. Indirectly, we will see the average citizen being able to farm at home, reduce their personal costs for food, and increase their levels of health. By just concentrating on the last idea, we can easily see how that would quickly translate into a
References: 1. Center for Invasive Species Research, University of California (Research). (n.d.). Entomophagy (Eating insects). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entomophagy#History 2. Filippone, P. (n.d.). Lobster History [Web log post]. Retrieved from http:// http://homecooking.about.com/od/foodhistory/a/lobsterhistory.htm 3. Gordon, D. (2003). The Eat-A-Bug Cookbook Revised. New York, NY: Ten Speed Press. 4. Retonthenet. (2014). Vintage Tins and Packaging. Vintage Tin Reese Finer Foods Inc Fried Ants. Photo retrieved from: http:// http://www.retonthenet.co.uk/vintage-tin-reese-finer-foods-inc-fried-ants-made-in-japan-circa-1950s-unopened-original-contents-3252-p.asp 5. Silverman, Jacob. "Do cows pollute as much as cars?" 16 July 2007. HowStuffWorks.com. 20 January 2014. 6. Sparrow, P. & Cooper, C. L. (2003). The Employment Relationship: Key Challenges for HR. Burlington: Butterworth-Heinemann. 7. When America was primarily an agrarian society. (2013, October 19). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agrarian_society