{"id":726256,"date":"2020-12-17T17:54:00","date_gmt":"2020-12-17T16:54:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.milk-food.de\/2020\/insects-power-bar\/"},"modified":"2026-05-14T16:52:04","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T14:52:04","slug":"insektenriegel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.milk-food.de\/en\/blog\/2020\/12\/17\/insektenriegel\/","title":{"rendered":"Insects Power Bar"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Power on six legs: The future is now<\/h1>\n\n

When it comes to the future of our diet, some foods are mentioned particularly often, such as algae, mushrooms and, of course, insects. Insects play a leading role because they provide high-quality proteins and are very sustainable in relation to their nutritional value, especially compared to meat, both in terms of water consumption,CO2<\/sub>, the conversion of feed into protein, and land use. Is that really why we’ll soon be eating all insects? They have long been part of the diet for about 2 billion people, and the FAO specifically recommends eating them<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n

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Soft or crunchy: What does the future hold for insects?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

But food is rarely a mere necessity for us. A steak is not eaten primarily to consume high-quality proteins, it is about enjoyment. About the pleasure of a juicy grilled steak<\/a>, which cannot be replaced so easily by insects. And even without an animal protein source it is possible to live very well and healthy. But insects could still enrich our diet, and it’s always good to have multiple pleasure options. Pleasure? Yes, it can also be learned from insects. <\/p>\n\n

There is a cultural hurdle to overcome<\/a>, because we associate insects with dirt or disgust and not with enjoyment, even though shrimp, which like insects belong to the arthropod phylum, are very popular in Europe. Hardly anyone liked bitter foods as a child, and even adults can learn to appreciate new foods. We are convinced that insects can be quite acceptable in our country, provided that it tastes good. Openness to the new helps; for others, we need to integrate the unusual into a familiar context so that it becomes accessible and not off-putting. <\/p>\n\n

Restaurants such as the D.O.M. in Brazil<\/a> and Noma<\/a> have already served ants, which have a special citrus aroma, and Daniel Spoerri served termites in his D\u00fcsseldorf restaurant<\/a> back in the 1960s; he too was interested in broadening his own culturally restricted view of our diet.<\/p>\n\n

Gentle and soft or crisp and controversial<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

We take an obvious approach to expanding our nutrition and use the valuable insect proteins as the basis for protein bars. So an Insect Power Bar. In advance we look for reliable sources and find Folke Dammann from “SNACK-INSECTS”<\/a>. He sends us a selection with which we can start our experiment directly: Mealworms, ground Buffalo worms, crickets and grasshoppers. <\/p>\n\n

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Delicious mealworms<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

Michael Bom Fr\u00f8st, former director of the Nordic Food Lab, believes that design and storytelling are keys to gaining acceptance for new and unusual foods (speaking of unusual foods of the future: Meat the future<\/a>). However, storytelling does not mean inventing convincing arguments; of course, it is important that the narrative corresponds to the truth in order to have a truly lasting effect. It is very helpful to present the unusual in a familiar context. Insects fit very well in terms of taste, appearance and texture to cereal bars as everyone knows them. The best conditions, therefore, for our bars to meet with broad acceptance. To make insects even more accessible as a food, we are pursuing two concepts for the insect bar: <\/p>\n\n