Food · Facts & sources
4 sourced facts about edible insects and alternative foods, each with the context behind the number. 4 more are in today's round and appear here after it closes.
Answerabout 80% of nations
Across those countries, people eat somewhere between 1,000 and 2,000 different insect species.
Source: UN Food and Agriculture Organization (2005) en.wikipedia.org
Answerabout 6 times less
That efficiency is a big part of why insects are studied as a more sustainable protein source.
Source: UN Food and Agriculture Organization (2024) fao.org
Answeraround 3,000 groups
That reflects just how widespread and culturally rooted insect-eating traditions are globally.
Source: UN Food and Agriculture Organization (2005) en.wikipedia.org
Answerabout 2 kg of feed
Insects convert feed into body mass far more efficiently than most farmed livestock.
Source: UN Food and Agriculture Organization (2024) fao.org