Learningaboutedibleinsectsfrom
SkyeBlackburnwaslife-changing.
Shetaughtmehowimportantthis
practiceis;fornutritional,environmental,
culturalandhistoricalreasons.She
encouragedmetolookintomyown
Chineseheritage,wherewehavebeen
eatinginsectsforthousandsofyears,
whichledmetocreatenewdishes.Whatis soamazingabout
Skyeis herexceptionalabilitytomakethis“taboo”subject
soaccessible.Sheis a naturalteacherandherinquisitive,
brilliantmindandgenuinedesire to share her knowledge
with others is inspirational.T
henexttimeyou’recravinga salty,crunchy
snack,SkyeBlackburnwouldloveyouto
considera handfulofinsects.Orcrickets
tobeexact,whichhavea similartexture
to“porkcrackling”butarefarmorenutritious.
If theideaofeatingwholeinsectsis a little
daunting– andBlackburnunderstandsit is for
manypeople– thereareplentyofothertastyways
toaddinsectstoyourdiet,includingcricket corn
chipsorhighproteincricketpasta.
“There’ssomanythingstolike
aboutedibleinsects,I don’tknow
whymorepeopledon’teatthem,”
enthusesBlackburn,whofounded
theEdibleBugShopin2007.
“Theyarereallyhighiniron,
calcium,magnesium,potassiumand
zinc,omega-3,aswellasvitamin
B12,andthey’vegota complete
aminoacidprofile– sowhenyou’re
addingthecricketproteintodifferentthings,you’re
actuallyprovidingyourbodywitha wholefood.”
Blackburn’sfascinationwithinsectsbegan
as a child,whenshewas“thatweirdkidthathad
bugsontheirdeskat school”.Atuniversity,she
studiedentomologybeforerealisingit offered
limitedemploymentoptions.
“Atthetimetherewasa shortageoffood
scientistssoI thought,I’lljustdoa degreeinfood
sciencesothatwhenI finishuniI cangeta job.”
Blackburnfirststarteda businessfarminginsects
forschoolprograms.Butit wasa noveltyideato drum
up interest that set her on the path to edible insects.“Wewentona holidaytoThailandandtried
edibleinsectsandI wasreallyfascinatedbythem.
Whenwecamehome,weweredoinga petand
animalexpoandI wastryingtothinkofsome
uniquepromotionalitemstosellandI thought
aboutdoingsomelollipopswithrealbugsinthe
middle,”Blackburnexplains.
ThelollipopssoldoutandBlackburnwas
floodedwithrequestsfrompeoplewantingtoget
theirhandsonheruniqueproduct.Blackburnsent
theinsectsfornutritionaltestingsoshecouldlabel
themforretailandwasstunnedbytheresults.
“I wasactuallysoshockedthatnoonewaseating
themasfoodbecausetheywerejustsohighin
everythingandhada completeaminoacidprofile.”
In2007,sheofficiallylaunchedtheEdible
BugShop,sellingnoveltyitemssuchas chocolate-
coatedbugs.
“Themarketwasn’treadyforcricketpastaor
cricketchips,”sherecalls.“Peopledidn’tunderstand
theimportanceofa sustainablefoodsystem.”
Butwithtime,bothattitudesandawareness
havechangedandtoday,CircleHarvestproducts
(theconsumerbrandforproductsmadebythe
EdibleBugShop)arestockedinsupermarkets
acrossAustralia.
“Peoplearereallymoreaware
ofwheretheirfoodcomesfrom
andthey’veheardofedibleinsects
andhowtheyaregoingtobean
importantpartofourdiet.”
Eatinginsectsis notonlygood
foryou,it is goodfortheplanet.
Thefarmingprocessusesfood
wastetofeedtheinsectsand
doesn’trequireanywater.
“Ifyoureplaceonemeat-basedmeala weekwith
a mealthatusesinsectsasyoursourceofprotein,
youactuallysaveover100,000litresofdrinking
watera year,”saysBlackburn.
A changethatis as simpleas swappingMonday
night’sspaghettiBologneseforcricketprotein
pastawithNeapolitansauce– ormakingnachos
withcricketcornchips.
“Therealityofhavinginsect-basedfoodis it
looksandtasteslikethingsyouwouldnormally
havebutit’sa better-for-you version.”●
ediblebugshop.com.au“There’s somany
thingstolikeabout
edibleinsects,
I don’t knowwhy
morepeopledon’t
eat them.”GOURMET TRAVELLER 25WORDS JOANNA HUNKIN (MAIN) & KYLIE KWONG (INTRO). PHOTOGRAPHY MARK POKORNY (KYLIE KWONG) & SANAZ PHOTOGRAPHY (SKYE BLACKBURN).