And the potential for mass production and expansion in product ranges in Britain, among others, has been held back.Ĭompanies such as Micronutris, Protifarm in the Netherlands, Essento in Switzerland and Entogourmet in Spain are understood to be preparing to ramp up their operations. The products have remained available in those countries as a result of a transition period to allow companies already producing food from insects to operate until they received the final judgment.
It stipulated that insect-based dishes would require novel food authorisation, putting the nascent insect-food industry in the EU on death row. But in 2018 a new EU law sought to bring some clarity. The UK, Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark and Finland have previously taken a permissive approach to an EU law that requires foods not eaten before 1997 to get novel food authorisation from Brussels.īritish, Dutch, Belgian, Danish and Finnish regulators had decided the EU directive did not pertain to animals products used for food. Without approval from the EFSA, they faced being banned elsewhere on the continent too. The products are prohibited from sale in France, Germany, Italy and Spain, among other European countries. Our risk evaluation is a decisive and necessary step in the regulation of novel foods by supporting policymakers in the EU in making science-based decisions and ensuring the safety of consumers.”įor leading players in the insects-as-food industry, the potential for their high-protein food has been held back by a lack of EU-wide approval. When dried, the maggot-like insect is said to taste a lot like peanuts.Įrmolaos Ververis, a scientific officer at the agency, said: “This first EFSA risk assessment of an insect as novel food can pave the way for the first EU-wide approval. The insect’s main components are protein, fat and fibre, offering a potentially sustainable and low carbon-emission source of food for the future.
The conclusion of scientists at the EU food safety agency, following an application by the French insect-for-food production company, Agronutris, is expected to lead to EU-wide approval within months of yellow mealworm as a product fit for supermarket shelves and kitchen pantries across the continent.
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