Crushed Bug ‘Additive’ is Now Included in Pizza, Pasta & Cereals Across the EU
January 25th, 2023
Via: Summit News:
As of yesterday, a food additive made out of powdered crickets began appearing in foods from pizza, to pasta to cereals across the European Union.
Yes, really.
Defatted house crickets are on the menu for Europeans across the continent, without the vast majority of them knowing it is now in their food.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32023R0005&from=EN The actual EU law
As an european vegan (and no, insects are not vegan!), I just want to point out that insect products have been sold for several years in numerous countries already – in my country there have been protein bars, powders and bread available in normal grocery stores for around 5 years and some people are interested in eating them fully knowingly. They are not very popular, though.
In the EU every product must contain a full list of all ingredients. That includes this cricket powder – so it will be labeled in the packaging, unlike the claim.
And because many countries have already approved selling insect products locally, it is normal for the EU to take make a bloc-wide rule concerning them.
The above EU law source also says:
(10) The Authority also considered in its opinion that the consumption of Acheta domesticus (house cricket) partially defatted powder may cause allergic reactions in persons that are allergic to crustaceans, molluscs and dust mites. Furthermore, the Authority noted that additional allergens may end up in the novel food, if those allergens are present in the substrate fed to insects. Therefore, it is appropriate that foods containing Acheta domesticus (house cricket) partially defatted powder are appropriately labelled in accordance with Article 9 of Regulation (EU) 2015/2283.
The pertinent sections concerning food ingredient labeling are these:
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32015R2283
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX%3A32011R1169
SO – they MUST be labeled according to the same labeling laws that are in effect for all other foods.
Russia Today is using this as propaganda like they tend to do. It would have been pertinent to include the actual law as it is.
After all, eating meat is legal everywhere, even though it causes immeasurable suffering to animals in factory farms, where they are kept in concetration camp conditions. As a vegan I find that disgusting.