Exploring the Possibilities of Incorporating Edible Insects into a Vegetarian Diet: A Survey of Vegetarian Consumer Acceptance.

BACKGROUND

Due to environmental, health, and ethical concerns, more consumers are reducing their meat consumption or giving it up entirely. Plant protein is most often chosen as a sustainable source of protein. Still, recently, edible insects have been gaining popularity as a source of alternative protein with a better nutritional profile. However, there is no information on whether vegetarians can accept insects.

METHODS

An online survey was conducted with a sample of 790 vegetarians to address this gap. The findings of this survey are crucial in understanding the potential acceptance of insects in vegetarian diets.

RESULTS

We found that 13% of the respondents approve of using processed insect protein in vegetarian dishes. Moreover, 9% of the respondents declared that they had knowingly consumed insects before; of these, 42% of them found the taste of the insects to be neutral, 16% found it to be very good, and 25% found it to be good. The level of insect acceptance was influenced by the type of vegetarian diet and its duration of use. Furthermore, pesca-vegetarians and flexi-vegetarians were the most likely to eat insects for ecological reasons (x¯ = 3.54 ± 0.74; x¯ = 3.00 ± 0.67, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

These findings do not eliminate the possibility of using edible insects in vegetarian diets but support their partial acceptance.