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Insects as an Innovative Source for Food Production
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Insects as an Innovative Source for Food Production

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 December 2020) | Viewed by 19487

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Lucia Aquilanti

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari, ed Ambientali (D3A), Università Politecnica delle Marche, Italy
Interests: Food microbiology, microbial dynamics in foods, fermented foods and beverages of animal and vegetable origin, novel foods, edible insects’ microbiota; antibiotic resistance in foods and food-chains; selection and monitoring of starter cultures
Prof. Dr. Andrea Osimani

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Ancona, Italy
Interests: lactic acid bacteria; fermented foods; fermented sausages; novel foods; yeasts; fermented beverages

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The consumer trend in choosing nutritionally high-quality foods with enhanced nutritional traits is constantly increasing, thus driving the food industry towards the selection of innovative and sustainable raw materials. Because of their positive nutritional characteristics and low environmental impact, edible insects might be considered a ‘food of the future’. In this context, researchers and food business operators have recently started to explore the exploitation of edible insects for production of nutritionally high-quality foods rich in protein, vitamins, amino acids, and minerals. Though some pioneer studies have explored the use of edible insects for manufacturing of novel foods, including minced meat-like and cereal-based products, further research is needed to evaluate the effects of these alternative poorly explored ingredients on the technological, nutritional, microbiological, and sensory properties of foods.

This Special Issue is therefore open to all contributions aimed at exploring the use of edible insects as sustainable sources for production of food ingredients and ready-to-eat foods with enhanced nutritional traits.

Prof. Lucia Aquilanti
Prof. Andrea Osimani
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • edible insects
  • insect-based foods
  • insect-based food ingredients
  • food safety
  • novel foods
  • fortified foods
  • nutritionally high-quality foods
  • edible insect processing
  • edible insect microbiota
  • consumer acceptance

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

34 pages, 3084 KiB  
Article
Control of Biological Hazards in Insect Processing: Application of HACCP Method for Yellow Mealworm (Tenebrio molitor) Powders
by Pauline Kooh, Vanessa Jury, Sophie Laurent, Frédérique Audiat-Perrin, Moez Sanaa, Vincent Tesson, Michel Federighi and Géraldine Boué
Foods 2020, 9(11), 1528; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods9111528 - 24 Oct 2020
Cited by 21 | Viewed by 8888
Abstract
Entomophagy has been part of human diets for a long time in a significant part of the world, but insects are considered to be a novel food everywhere else. It would appear to be a strategic alternative in the future of human diet [...] Read more.
Entomophagy has been part of human diets for a long time in a significant part of the world, but insects are considered to be a novel food everywhere else. It would appear to be a strategic alternative in the future of human diet to face the challenge of ensuring food security for a growing world population, using more environmentally sustainable production systems than those required for the rearing of other animals. Tenebrio molitor, called yellow mealworm, is one of the most interesting insect species in view of mass rearing, and can be processed into a powder that ensures a long shelf life for its use in many potential products. When considering insects as food or feed, it is necessary to guarantee their safety. Therefore, manufacturers must implement a Hazard Analysis Critical Control plan (HACCP), to limit risks for consumers’ health. The aim of this case study was to develop a HACCP plan for Tenebrio molitor larvae powders for food in a risk-based approach to support their implementation in industry. Specific purposes were to identify related significant biological hazards and to assess the efficiency of different manufacturing process steps when used as Critical Control Points. Then, combinations of four different processes with four potential uses of powders by consumers in burger, protein shake, baby porridge, and biscuits were analyzed with regard to their safety. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insects as an Innovative Source for Food Production)
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17 pages, 2775 KiB  
Article
Effect of Blanching Plus Fermentation on Selected Functional Properties of Mealworm (Tenebrio molitor) Powders
by An Borremans, Sara Bußler, Sorel Tchewonpi Sagu, Harshadrai Rawel, Oliver K. Schlüter and Van Campenhout Leen
Foods 2020, 9(7), 917; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods9070917 - 12 Jul 2020
Cited by 24 | Viewed by 4836
Abstract
The aim of this study was to determine the effect of blanching followed by fermentation of mealworms (Tenebrio molitor) with commercial meat starter cultures on the functional properties of powders produced from the larvae. Full fat and defatted powder samples were [...] Read more.
The aim of this study was to determine the effect of blanching followed by fermentation of mealworms (Tenebrio molitor) with commercial meat starter cultures on the functional properties of powders produced from the larvae. Full fat and defatted powder samples were prepared from non-fermented and fermented mealworm pastes. Then the crude protein, crude fat, and dry matter contents, pH, bulk density, colour, water and oil binding capacity, foaming capacity and stability, emulsion capacity and stability, protein solubility, quantity of free amino groups, and protein composition of the powders were evaluated. Regardless of the starter culture used, the blanching plus fermentation process reduced the crude and soluble protein contents of the full fat powders and in general impaired their water and oil binding, foaming, and emulsifying properties. Defatting of the powders improved most functional properties studied. The o-phthaldialdehyde assay revealed that the amount of free amino groups was higher in the fermented powders while sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis demonstrated that the soluble proteins of the fermented powders were composed of molecules of lower molecular mass compared to non-fermented powders. As molecular sizes of the soluble proteins decreased, it was clear that the protein structure was also modified by the fermentation process, which in turn led to changes in functional properties. In general, it was concluded that fermentation of mealworms with blanching as a pre-treatment does not contribute to the functional properties studied in this work. Nevertheless, the results confirmed that the properties of non-fermented powders are comparable to other food protein sources. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insects as an Innovative Source for Food Production)
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14 pages, 661 KiB  
Article
Addition of Olive Pomace to Feeding Substrate Affects Growth Performance and Nutritional Value of Mealworm (Tenebrio Molitor L.) Larvae
by Sara Ruschioni, Nino Loreto, Roberta Foligni, Cinzia Mannozzi, Nadia Raffaelli, Federica Zamporlini, Marina Pasquini, Andrea Roncolini, Federica Cardinali, Andrea Osimani, Lucia Aquilanti, Nunzio Isidoro, Paola Riolo and Massimo Mozzon
Foods 2020, 9(3), 317; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods9030317 - 10 Mar 2020
Cited by 54 | Viewed by 5105
Abstract
The well-recognized efficiency of Tenebrio molitor larvae to convert low quality organic matter into a nutritionally valuable biomass was exploited to manage solid wastes coming from the olive oil industry, which represent a severe environmental challenge in the Mediterranean area. Three organic pomace-enriched [...] Read more.
The well-recognized efficiency of Tenebrio molitor larvae to convert low quality organic matter into a nutritionally valuable biomass was exploited to manage solid wastes coming from the olive oil industry, which represent a severe environmental challenge in the Mediterranean area. Three organic pomace-enriched substrates (mixtures middlings/pomace 3:1, 1:1, and 1:3) were assessed, together with 100% organic wheat flour and 100% organic middlings as control feeds. A feeding substrate made up of 25% olive pomace and 75% wheat middlings appeared to be the best compromise between growth performance (larval and pupal weights, survival rate, development time) and nutritional properties of mealworm larvae. In fact, larvae fed the 3:1 feed showed the highest dry matter (DM) yield (38.05%), protein content (47.58% DM), and essential/non-essential amino acids ratio (1.16). Fat content (32.14% DM) and fatty acid composition were not significantly different than those of larvae fed more pomace-enriched feeds. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insects as an Innovative Source for Food Production)
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