EXPO MILAN 2015 Insects: from Belgium to Belgian Pavilion

INSECTS: the proteins of the future

Paul Vantomme@fao.org

Overview / Summary

1. Context and Drivers in the global Food and Feed supply:

The (animal!) Protein supply

2. Protein Alternatives? and.....Why Insects ? Most suitable alternative, globally

3. What’s going on? Fast unfolding sector FAO’s role? Info sharing, consumer acceptance

and policy/regulation development

The Economist, 20 dec 2014

“China’s insatiable appetite for pork is a symbol of the country’s rise. It is also a danger to the world”

• Since 1970: pork consumption X 7

• China produces now 500 m swine a year, increasingly relying on imported feed (50% of total global soy market)....causing deforestation in the Amazon.

Feeding chickens, fish, pork in China

China bought a record 70 million tonnes of soy (FAO, 2013) Since 2011, China is the world largest “Food” importing country (80 B$)

2050

?

China GDP to grow at least 5% over the next decade. Rising domestic demand for animal proteins to continue

1 May 2014 Nature, Vol 509 China produces almost 30% of the world’s pork, and its farmers use FOUR TIMES more antibiotics

than their US, EU counterparts to produce the same amount of meat.

Antibiotic resistance genes(ARGs) are enriched

by up to 28,000-fold in manure and soil on Chinese pig farms

“But the animal industry is less developed in coping with manure and waste water”

ILRI, 2015

Hotspots: Livestock: China, Brazil, India, EU Aquaculture: China, Vietnam, Chile

Antimicrobial-resistant infections currently claim at least 50,000 lives each year in Europe and the US . . . and some estimate that drug-resistant infections will cause 10 million extra deaths a year and cost the global economy up to $100 trillion by 2050 (mainly E. coli and which resistance could be linked to agricultural use).

1. Context and Drivers in our Food and Feed supply

Can we produce enough, safe food, responsibly?

Feed the WORLD in 2014

We are feeding:

• 7 billion people (42 kg of MEAT/ 20 Kg of FISH (average capita food availability)

• < 1 billion pet animals (dogs, cats, birds, fish, horses, .......zoo’s)

Farmed animals for human consumption

• 20 billion chickens/ 1,5 cattle,pigs/ 1,2 ducks/ 1,1 b sheep/ 1 b goats/ 0,8 b rabbits/....

• 70 million tons of fish/aquaculture food .......

What food ? 8.4 billion tons (FAO, 2012)

Animal ( b$ / mTons)

• Milk 226 / 723 • Meat:

– Cattle 169 / 62 – Pig 169 / 109 – Chicken 132 / 93

• Eggs 55 / 66 (751b$) ................ By 2050: 70% more

Vegetal (b$ / mTons)

• Rice 186 / 738 • Wheat 79 / 671 • Soy 61 / 241 • Tomato 59 / 161 • Sugarcane 58 / 1842 • Corn 54 / 873 • Potatoes 49 / 365 • Vegetables 46 / 270 • Fruits (4) 122 / 186 • Cassava 25 / 269 (739b$) By 2050: 50% more

To feed the WORLD in 2014 Global food/feed production requires: • 40% of world ice-free land surface is for

AGRICULTURE (forest: 30%; deserts-mountains:25; wetlands,urban,....

• 70% of total agriculture land use is for feeding livestock

• 30% of all grains fed to animals (Soy:80%/Corn:50%)

• 70% of total fresh water use is for agriculture • 110 million tons of chemical fertilizer • 2,3 million tons of pesticides (1/3 glyphosates!)

• 14 a 17% of total GHG emissions

Feed the planet: summary

• Global agriculture production tripled in last 50 years with only 12% increase in farmed area (population doubled during the last 50 years!)

• Water consumption growing twice as fast as population growth

• Food loss and waste at 1.3 billion tons/year (out of the 8.4b). Net food availability: 1 ton/ person/ year

Context to feed the WORLD by 2050

We will need to feed:

• 9 billion people (with higher demands for animal derived proteins up to 60 kg of MEAT/ 30 Kg of FISH (average capita food availability)

• > 2 billion pet animals (dogs, cats, birds, fish, horses, .......zoo’s)

Farmed animals for human consumption

chicken and aquaculture: 7% annual increase

• 60 billion chickens ?

• 140 million tons of aquaculture products ?

Meat and Fish revolution !

• global meat production has grown 25-fold since 1800 due to population growth ↑ and per capita consumption ↑ → global trend: from occasional luxury to centrepiece of every meal !!!!

• Farmed fish: fastest growing sector !

Fish Shortage foreseen by 2030 everywhere

Pressure: more PROTEIN !

Per capita consumption increase of major food items in developing countries

(1961-2005) → increasing demand for meat and other animals products

FAO, 2009

eggs x 5

meat x 3

milk x 2

Per capita MEAT consumption

Italy: 91 kg

Belgium: 82 kg

OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2015-2024

Global Fish Shortages by 2030

OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2015-2024

Soy Corn mainly

2. Protein alternatives

• Capture more out of oceans: Medusae, Jelly fish, krill,... • Farming the sea: macro, micro Algae (Spirula – High tech) • Artificial proteins: meat (120.000$/kg), synthetic AAs (6-16 $/kg) • More out of Agro-industry processing byproducts: mais gluten, brewers

grains, yeasts, potato protein concentrate, ... • Farming more plant protein sources: oil seeds; legumes, forages, trees

(Moringa leaves),.......

Compete for land, water, fertilizers, farm inputs OR High capital/tech (spirula)

potential: regional- niche markets

• Rearing # “Mini-livestock species” (earthworms, insects, snails, ... )

in addition to improve existing protein production and consumption practices

Seaweed – micro algae

Algae

• Oils for biofuels

• Food

• Health supplements (skin care lotions, ...)

• Livestock feed (high in protein)

• Soil fertilizer

• Source for agar,....

High Energy – Capital – Technology intensive !!

Insects ?

• Food for 2 b people + natural feed of chickens, carnivore fish, pigs,... • Good proteins, fats, minerals, + micro nutrients • Feed conversion efficiency: 4x cattle • Can be Fed with organic waste, not competing with foods for humans • Fast breeding cycle (10 days to 1 month) • Less water, land, CHG,.. • Socially more inclusive – easy to farm, no need for huge investment or

“high tech” skills • Opportunities for business and jobs at any level, everywhere • May help reduce use of antibiotics in feed...... • Interdisciplinary: food-feed-health-waste disposal- climate change... • Global market potential........

“one stone....many birds”

Edible Insects and Nutrition – Nutritional values are highly variable :

• depending on metamorphical stage, habitat and diet

• processing plays a large role in determining nutritional content

– Insects are particularly important as a food/feed supplements because (comparable with fish):

• Provide satisfactory amounts of energy and protein, meet amino acid requirements

• High in monounsaturated and/or polyunsaturated fatty acids

• Rich in micronutrients: •copper •iron •magnesium •manganese •phosphorous •selenium

•zinc •riboflavin •pantothenic acid •biotin •in some cases, folic acid

Insect Consumption

Appr. 2 billion people some 50 Countries (with at least 5 species)

Supply –mostly by gathering in nature (2000+

species)

–some 20+ species by semi domestication (bamboo worms) and now by farming (fly larvae)

Farming - Substrate Wide variety of organic materials :

– # insect species

– Species have specific feed requirements

– sequential species on same substrate + interaction with others: earthworms, nematodes, fungi, yeasts (fermentation)…..

• Competing with the human \ farm animal food chain: for example rearing crickets with commercial chicken feed NO EFFICIENCY GAINS !

• Not Competing: low value rest streams, for example: food\feed\farming and animal processing wastes. HIGHEST EFFICIENCY GAINS !

Examples from around the world

Global stakeholders: 1000+… and fast increasing !

http://www.fao.org/forestry/edibleinsects/stakeholder-directory/en/

• Examples from the US: Chapul, Exo, Tiny Farms, All

things Bugs, Six Foods, Don Bugito, …..(25 start-ups since 2012 !) https://www.exoprotein.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpol2d0c820

More examples

• Proteinsect EU project: http://www.proteinsect.eu/

• Greeinsect Denmark : http://greeinsect.ku.dk/

• Thailand cricket farmers (20.000+)

• Flying Foods (Kenia)

• Inspire.......(Ghana, PNG,..)

3. FAO’s role ?

• Improve and focus awareness (Media, sectors: food, feed,... ....

• Events, projects, gastronomy... Consumer acceptance

• Increase knowledge generation, dissemination, networking.... (incl. protection of (indigenous) knowledge, nutrition data,

environmental benefits, LCA, socio-economic contribution, jobs, ....

• Legislation and regulatory frameworks (food, feed,

waste disposal, insect inclusive nature conservation strategies, habitat protection, gathering, processing, trade, consumer protection, health, ..... (Codex Alimentarius)

• Economic’s and technology: reduce costs, improve efficiencies,

automation, business innovation and new products, .......

Academia

Policy makers

Private sector

Field projects

LAOS THAILAND CONGO

TRAINING 1000 INSECT FARMERS IN KINSHASA

Legislation and regulatory frameworks

For free roaming chickens: insects are part of their feed......

But insects are legally NOT allowed in chicken feed (EU) !

Regulatory frameworks at country level

• Insects for human food a) De facto in # countries with entomophagy (Thai+conserving gathering of insects in nature policies tbd)

b) recently in Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, Korea, USA, .... and in progress at the EU (DG 6).

• Insects as animal feed EU: Allowed for pet animals, and fish farming (what substrate to feed to the insects ?)

Regulatory frameworks at global level

• Codex Alimentarius (food/ feed) : to facilitate TRADE among countries

- No entries yet on “Insects” (as food/feed) as there is no

officially reported trade on insects in country statistics

- Up to countries (national food safety agency) to propose regulations through CA regional or thematic commissions

Importance of the (forthcoming 2016?) EU regulation on EI as a global standard setting (EFSA report to DG6 by sept 2015)

What next ?

• FAO is made by and for its member countries Lobbying national food safety agencies, agriculture ministries to bring EI

“officially "on FAO’s agenda (in its Regional/Thematic Committees).

• Research for enhancing safe production and EI products

By academia, government and entrepreneurs

• Further improve consumers acceptability for EI Press and media, Chefs, Tasting Events,...

• Support structuring of the sector globally • Support private sector, NGO’s, governments,....

MANY THANKS .....and good appetite !