“Bugs are coming soon to your dinner table,” so says Bloomberg.
That cringeworthy claim was just Bloomberg media’s latest effort promoting insect consumption to Americans who would probably rather grab a burger and fries.
In a June 5, article and Youtube video the media outlet tried to make bug eating sounds trendy, tasty and good for the planet. In spite of their efforts touting ground insect protein for use in chocolate and breakfast granola, the story is sure to leave a bad taste in people’s mouths.
“Insects, already part of the diets of 2 billion people, mainly in Asia, are set to reach more dining tables as consumer concern about the environmental and social costs of producing beef, pork and poultry overrides the yuck factor of eating bug-filled burger,” Bloomberg claimed.
Maybe it overrides the “yuck factor” for Bloomberg writers or extreme environmentalists, but the gag reflex is sure to remain strong for many people.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSYMOyE604k&feature=youtu.be&utm_content=tictoc&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&cmpid%3D=socialflow-twitter-tictoc&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social align:center]
The @tictoc by Bloomberg video claimed an insect diet “could solve the world’s looming food crisis,” but didn’t specify the source of that supposed crisis. It hyped bugs for having “more protein” than wheat flour and being versatile enough to put in many foods.
The article promoted insect farming (such as crickets) saying, “Using little land and emitting a fraction of the greenhouse gases generated by cattle, that appeal will grow as a surging population stretches scarce global resources.”
That makes sense given all the complaining climate alarmists have done for years about livestock consumption.
The media outlet owned by Michael Bloomberg, an outspoken climate alarmist, touted what it considered benefits of insect farming: less waste, a greater efficiency of feed, and a meat with higher nutritional value.
The article quoted the United Nations’ Food & Agriculture Organization comparisons between producing crickets and beef as well as Massimo Reverberi, the founder of insect food company Bugsolutely, who called edible insects a “super-food.”
Reverberi also claimed, “Some people say it will be like sushi in 20 years. I am really optimistic that it may be a lot faster.”
Encouraging insect consumption is a frequent effort of Bloomberg media. In 2014, a Bloomberg article trumpeted crickets as “insect food of the future.” A 2017 article favorably profiled a Bangkok restaurant that served insects. A June 23, 2016, article titled “Ask people to eat insects and it’s [sic] crickets” was much more explicit in its request. In 2017, another Bloomberg video profiled the world’s “first desktop worm farm.”
Bloomberg’s latest story was so busy hyping insect as a trendy, “planet friendly” food it barely acknowledged any obstacles to the industry.
