Enjoying some ice cream in the hot South African sun sounds like a no brainier. The long summer months and dry desert atmosphere surely is enough to keep the frozen dessert industry in business, however, this new Cape Town start-up is looking to not only open the minds of ice cream lovers everywhere, but also show the world just how sustainable the food industry can really be; and they’re doing it with bugs.

Gourmet Grubb is a new luxury ice cream establishment in Cape Town, South Africa, and they’re quickly becoming known as the start-up that makes its food with bugs. Yes, you read that correctly; when looking for a new and sustainable way of making this classic dessert, Gourmet Grubb discovered that using EntoMilk is not only beneficial to the environment, but offers a dairy-free ice cream option as well.

EntoMilk is a dairy alternative that is made by “blending the larvae of a tropical insect known as the black soldier fly.” Before you immediately write-off EntoMilk based ice cream as gross and weird, know that around the world there are about 1,900 different insect species that are consumed by human beings as a regular practice. While eating bugs hasn’t really infiltrated Western culture too much, there are plenty of different areas of the world that enjoy insects as a delicacy or snack, it just depends on where you are.

Flavors of the ice-cream include all the classics like vanilla, chocolate, and peanut butter, and a few specialty flavors like Christmas Spices. The EntoMilk apparently gives the ice cream a “slightly earthy undertone with an overall rich and creamy taste,” according to Leah Bessa, a co-founder of Gourmet Grubb.

According to their website, EntoMilk has five times the amount of protein and nutrients when compared to traditional dairy products. Additionally it contains large amounts of fat, minerals, zinc, iron, and calcium, all of which are traditionally found in protein enriched foods like beef, however, EntoMilk is way more concentrated in all of these things compared to beef. The milk is also lactose and gluten-free, and doesn’t contain any sugar or carbs; traditional ice cream can’t say any of that.

Besides being better for you, the means of creating this EntoMilk-based ice cream is much more environmentally sustainable compared to most other food industry means of production and distribution. This is important as one of the biggest industries contributing to climate change is the industrialized factory means of producing food. The United Nations has claimed that the entire planet will need to double its food production to keep up with the rising population rates. To avoid a massive famine epidemic, this change needs to occur by 2050.

“We decided to focus on an industry [food] that is under a lot of pressure due to animal welfare and environmental concerns. Insects aren’t sentient beings, and they only grow in the conditions in which they thrive, so the farming conditions cater to their animal welfare needs. Insects need very little water, feed and space to grow. They also produce little/no greenhouse gases compared to traditional livestock,” said Bessa.

Mario Barnard, chef at Gourmet Grubb

Insect farming is also much more environmentally conscious because it can be done indoors, meaning in more metropolitan areas. Transporting farm-grown produce/products from rural farms burns fossil fuels and emits tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. In a more localized indoor setting, these bugs can grow, thrive, and contribute, without having to worry about daily weather patterns affecting their growth.

The data doesn’t lie, insect livestock is going to be a major part of our food industry in the future, it’s just an idea a lot of human beings will have to grow accustomed to. It’s estimated that by 2023 the global edible insect market will reach a market value of $1.2 billion, making Gourmet Grubb fairly ahead of the curve. So much so that they’re even experimenting with some popup stores where they serve more insect-infused dishes like pasta.

“We need to find alternatives that will be able to sustain the growing population and create a sustainable and environmentally friendly farming system. The only way EntoMilk can truly make a difference and reduce the pressures of traditional dairy is if it is accepted and consumed on a global scale,” said Bessa.

Ellie Inc.’s cheeseburger looks just like the real deal. So does the hearty bowl of minestrone and the chiffon cake with whipped cream advertised on the company’s website. They apparently taste like the real thing, too, except for hints of a nutty, sweet flavor characteristic of one of their ingredients — silkworms.

The products developed by the startup under the firm’s Silk Food banner contain edible sericulture insects and are marketed as a high-protein, low-cost alternative and sustainable food source. And there’s more on the menu: The firm has produced Italian, sesame and Caesar salad dressings and a dipping sauce made from silkworms, with new items in the works.

“When I became interested in venturing into this business, I sampled various insects, including crickets, which are one of the more popular edible critters,” says Takahiro Kajikuri, the co-founder of Ellie. “None tasted really good until I had the opportunity to try a fresh silkworm larvae. I knew this was it.”

Crawling, hopping and, at times, swarming, insects have long been eaten by humans despite their cringe-inducing image. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, a quarter of the world’s population — or around 2 billion people — consume bugs such as beetles, caterpillars, bees, wasps, ants and locusts as part of their diet. And it’s not just humans. Insects constitute high-quality food for livestock, poultry and fish as well.

They’ve expanded in relevance in recent years as population growth and urbanization have led to increasing demand for food while simultaneously polluting land and water resources through livestock production and overgrazing. And as nationwide, statewide and citywide lockdowns triggered by the coronavirus pandemic hit the supply chains of global meat product manufacturers, demand for alternative protein sources such as insect-based foods could see an uptick, according to some analysts.

However, there’s a certain yuck factor that has prevented insect meals from becoming mainstream, a stereotype that a growing number of startups such as Ellie are trying to change.

“So far, the argument for eating insects has mainly focused on the environmental aspect, but that’s not enough to convince the average consumer to give it a try,” Kajikuri says. “We need to generate additional value through marketing and efforts to make it palatable and visually appealing.”

Once the world’s top silk producer, Japan has a long history of sericulture and an ingrained affinity toward the silkworm, Kajikuri says, another reason why he chose the particular bug for his business. Research conducted in collaboration with Kyoto University and other institutions has also discovered that silkworms contain not only basic nutrients such as protein and vitamins, but also over 50 functional ingredients.

And investors are taking notice. In March 2020, Ellie raised ¥45 million through a third-party allocation of shares, funds being used to research the functionality, flavor improvement and selective breeding of silkworms in collaboration with academic partners.

“We currently import silkworms from Vietnamese farmers and devise our own recipes working with chefs,” Kajikuri says. The company operated a pop-up shop in Tokyo’s upscale Omotesando district until July, where it sold silkworm burgers, soup and snacks. With the pandemic taking a toll on the restaurant industry, however, Ellie is now focusing on selling its products online.

“Compared to when we started our company in 2018, the reception toward edible insects has improved substantially,” Kajikuri says. “I can sense that consumers are picking up on the trend and how it could benefit our environment.”

Obvious benefits

Entomophagy, or the practice of eating insects, has been an established tradition in many countries, especially in Asia, Africa and Latin America. In fact, of the 1 million or so insect species, 1,900 are consumed by humans, according to the United Nations.

In Japan, for example, rice grasshoppers boiled in soy sauce and sugar known as inago no tsukudani have long been served as an important nutritional supplement in inland, mountainous prefectures. The larvae of silkworms and bees cooked similarly are also delicacies that can be purchased in canned form.

While insects remain visually discernible in many dishes, they are also commonly roasted, dried and powdered to form high protein flour that can be used in preparing snack bars and various other foods such as chips and cookies.

There are obvious health and environmental benefits to eating bugs. They are nutritious and low calorie, and produce far less greenhouse gases. According to a landmark 2013 report by the FAO titled “Edible Insects: Future Prospects for Food and Feeds Security,” pigs produce 10 to 100 times more greenhouse gases per kilogram than mealworms.

The report also says insects feed on bio-waste, use significantly less water than livestock and can be farmed more easily while offering jobs to rural inhabitants. Such alternative food sources will be increasingly necessary as the world’s population is set to reach 10 billion by 2050, it says.

Restaurants in the United States are picking up on the trend. The Oyamel Cocina Mexicana in Washington, for example, serves grasshopper taco, while the Black Ant in New York offers black ant guacamole. There are also numerous companies selling cricket, locust, ant and beetle flour. All these factors appear to promise a thriving industry once consumer disgust can be overcome.

According to Global Market Insights, the market for edible insects is forecast to soar to $1.5 billion in 2026 from $112 million in 2019. Meanwhile, Meticulous Market Research said in a recent report that COVID-19 could potentially promote the consumption of insect-based food products as meat producers face operational and logistical challenges posed by the pandemic.

“The meat products manufacturing industry has faced major challenges, including the risk of continuing production, distribution, transportation and other supply chain activities; lack of workforce; and delays in development activities,” the report said. “These factors are expected to impact the meat products industry, thereby driving the demand for alternative protein substitutes, including insect protein products.”

Based on insect type, it says crickets appear to have held the largest share of the overall edible insects market in 2020, thanks to a well-established market, high nutritional value, and easy farming and processing.