Nutritional composition of five commercial edible insects in South Korea

The nutritional potential of five preferred insect species used as food and feed in Korea, Allomyrina dichotoma (Coleoptera: Dynastidae), Protaetia brevitarsis (Coleoptera: Cetoniidae), Tenebrio molitor (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), Teleogryllus emma (Orthoptera: Gryllidae), and Gryllus bimaculatus (Ortoptera: Gryllidae), was accessed. Most of these species contained high protein contents with low variation (53.2 to 58.3%) except for P. brevitarsis, whose protein tally amounted to 44.2%. Fat contents of the insects varied widely (11.9 to 34.5%). G. bimaculatus was found to contain the least amount of fat, but highest amount of protein including essential amino acids. T. molitor contained the highest amount of fat (34.5%), suggesting a possible future role as a commercial source of oil. A total of 17 amino acids (8 essential, 1 conditional essential and 8 non-essential) as well as 26 fatty acids (12 SFA, 6 MUFA and 8 PUFA) were determined. Except for methionine all other essential amino acids satisfied the protein level recommended by FAO/WHO/UNU (2007). The MUFA proportion was highest in the beetle larvae, but PUFA contents were maximal in the cricket adults. Compared with conventional animal meats and chicken eggs, especially the crickets that we examined seem superior from a nutritional perspective as they contain higher amounts of protein, iron, zinc and magnesium and possess fats with fewer SFAS but more PUFAs (with the exception of A. dichotoma). Systematic farming of these insects could be one sustainable alternative to vertebrate animal food with less environmental pressures.