The Belgium Pavilion at Expo Milano focused in on the food of the future this week with a serving of dishes that including edible insects. A move that was only possible thanks to a special proxy granted to the Expo organisation allowing them to serve insect based products officially for the first time ever in Italy.
Insects have been touted as a perfect protein to feed the planet and its growing population in the future and to highlight this a number of experts and press met for the tasting organised by the Società Umanitaria.
Alongside talks from Paul Vantomme of FAO and Frederic Francis from the University of Liege, the guests sampled pasta made with flour produced with mealworms. There was also sauces produced with carrot and tomato with mealworm for added protein.
“Our goal is to leave a livable planet for future generations thanks to the introduction of industrial food productions that are highly sustainable such as edible insects”, explained Andrea Mascaretti, head of the Edible Insects Project and Amos Nannini, president of the Società Umanitaria.
Belgium helped to set standard in the EU in 2014 when the Federal Food Safety Agency approved a list of 10 insects that are safe for human consumption. The country is also home to Green Kow - Europe's first company to offer food products containing mealworms.
There is also a space within the Expo’s Future Food District to exhibit over 1000 different edible insect based food products.
These are tough times for chefs and restaurant professionals around the world, but there has never been a better time to seek advice and help around a number of topics affecting hospitality workers. Here's a round-up of some of the most useful resources for chefs.
Mauro Colagreco will be taking the World's Best Restaurant to the Mandala Club in Singapore for a three-month residency, from 14 May to 11 August. Find out more.
Can chocolate go off or go bad? And what do the white bits on old chocolate mean? Here's all you need to know about chocolate expiry dates and whether it's safe to eat chocolate past it's printed date.
In the second of our Beyond the Line series, Fine Dining Lovers speaks to a former student of the Basque Culinary Center in San Sebastian, Spain, about his career choices beyond restaurant kitchens.
