Insects are the hot new menu item -- at least in Europe right now. The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization maintain that insects are a vital part of our diet to meet the nutritional needs of the ever-expanding global population, but they hardly feature in the diets of many rich nations. So the European Commission is reportedly investing more than $2 million into researching insects as a global food source. More than 1,000 insects are eaten in 80 percent of countries around the world -- but mainly those in the tropics.
THE MOST COMMONLY EATEN INSECT SPECIES
- Beetles and cockroaches
- Flies
- Lice and coccidia
- Cicadas
- Wasps, bees and ants
- Termites
- Butterflies and moths
- Dragonflies
- Crickets and grasshoppers
- Mantises
