Search Results (61)

The contemporary food environment is experiencing substantial transformations, and sustainability and the pursuit of novel ingredients have become pivotal factors in consumer decision-making and business strategy formulation. The emergence of alternative proteins has significant implications for sustainability, climate change mitigation and animal welfare, and can potentially promote the achievement of different United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The spread of these novel foods requires significant attention, particularly concerning younger demographics, which are often considered to be more environmentally and ethically aware when making dietary choices. This study investigates the psychological and attitudinal factors that shape young consumers’ intention to consume plant-based, insect-based, and cultured meat alternative proteins, and verifies the existence of heterogeneous segments of consumers. To this purpose principal component analysis and k-means cluster analysis are employed using data from an online survey conducted in Italy, with a sample of 350 young consumers. The findings reveal that the intention to consume alternative protein sources is not particularly pronounced among the young consumers and differs according to the type of alternative protein. Three different profiles of young consumers were found: traditionalist (39% of the sample); enthusiastic (17%) and open-minded (44%). These segments differ significantly with respect to consumption intention, socio-demographic, lifestyle and psychological variables. The results provide useful insights for policymakers to design targeted interventions to encourage young consumers’ sustainable food choices. The findings could also be useful for marketers interested in investing in such innovations as they can benefit from an in-depth knowledge of this market segment. Full article

Ticks pose one of the key economic risks to the cattle industry globally, affecting productivity, health, and welfare. Over 80% of the cattle population around the globe is affected by tick infestation. Several tick control methods, including the use of chemical acaricides, herbal agents, and some complementary measures, like the use of old motor oil, disinfectant, pour-on, tick grease, pulling off, cutting, paraffin, and Jeyes fluid, have been used by farmers to alleviate the effects of hematophagous ticks. However, these strategies are often mistakenly employed and can harm animals. Likewise, these methods cannot be sustained because of their cost, environmental impact, flaws, and resistance. An abundantly available, cost-effective, environmentally friendly, and naturally occurring substance like fossil shell flour with no known side effects could present a sustainable solution. This review abridged the research and information on hematophagous tick control in South African cattle production using fossil shell flour. This is a systematic review of the published literature and catalogues. All available documented evidence on this topic was collated and synthesized through standardized methods of systematic review protocol. Different scientific studies and a few references from farmers’ magazines published from 1941 to 2022 were reviewed. Out of 120 research papers downloaded, 98 were included and analyzed directly or indirectly regarding hematophagous tick control in cattle production and the use of fossil shell flour among livestock farmers. The advancement in ectoparasite control through fossil shell flour is a novel concept that needs to be explored for the benefit of all livestock farmers, hence this review. Fossil shell flour has been shown to have good insecticidal effectiveness against insects of animal and agricultural importance. We hereby recommend the exploration of FSF as an alternative tick control measure to the currently used acaricides to which ticks have developed resistance. Full article

The consumption of insect-based foods has been widely studied in recent years due to their nutritional value and their contribution to sustainability. In this study, the integrated sustainable neophilic insect-based eating model (ISNIEM) was used to investigate the various parameters that influence the intention of members of Turkish society to consume insect-based foods. Structural equation modeling was used to test the ISNIEM. A total of 1194 participants were reached through an online survey. According to the study data, sustainability attitudes (biospheric values, new human interdependence paradigm, attitude toward sustainability, attention to insect welfare) influence individuals’ intentions to consume insect-based foods by interacting with each other; however, intentions do not influence behavior in the same direction. As expected, food neophobia reduced the number of chosen insect-based foods (NCIBF) (β: −0.121; p < 0.001), while social norms positively influenced the NCIBF (β: 0.176; p < 0.001) and reduced food neophobia (β: −0.307; p < 0.001). Meanwhile, social norms and food neophobia did not affect the intention to eat insect-based food (p > 0.05). The findings of this study suggest that the ISNIEM may be effective in predicting individuals’ intentions and behaviors toward eating insect-based foods in Turkey. Full article

The large-scale insect rearing sector is expected to grow significantly in the next few years, with Hermetia illucens L. (black soldier fly, BSF) playing a pivotal role. As with traditional livestock, it is essential to improve and ensure BSF welfare. A starting point can be an adaptation of the Five Freedoms framework. Feed availability must be optimized to meet larvae nutritional needs (freedom from hunger) while maximizing substrate conversion efficiency. Similarly, rearing density needs to be optimized to ensure well-being, particularly in large-scale operations. In this study, Control (commercial laying hen feed) and Omnivorous substrates (vegetable and meat) were used as dietary regimes. In the first trial, three feeding rates were tested: 50, 100, and 200 mg feed/larva/day; in the second trial, three rearing densities were evaluated: 5, 10, and 15 larvae/cm². Performance parameters, including final larval weight, final frass biomass, growth rate, substrate reduction, feed conversion ratio, larval length, survival rate, larvae chemical composition, and process optimization, were studied. Our results show that a feeding rate of approximately 90 mg feed/larva/day in the Omnivorous diet and 175 mg feed/larva/day in the Control diet, along with a rearing density of 5 and 7.57 larvae/cm², respectively, in the Omnivorous and Control diets, produced optimal growth performances ensuring larval well-being. This outcome offers valuable insights for implementing good welfare practices in the insect farming sector and optimizing rearing management and efficiency. Full article

The insect farming sector is expanding, but knowledge of insect welfare is still limited. This article aims to optimize the dietary regime for “black soldier fly” (Hermetia illucens L., BSF) larvae by applying a holistic view of welfare. Four diets were tested: control (CONTR, commercial laying hen feed), vegetable (VEG), omnivorous (OMN), and carnivorous (MEAT) diet, conducting experiments at a large (2000 larvae) and small scale (100 larvae). Rearing parameters were calculated including the growth rate, substrate reduction, efficiency of conversion of digested food, waste reduction index, and survival rate. Chemical analyses were conducted on BSF larvae and the residual frass. While the MEAT diet appears to be non-well-performing for the larvae, the VEG diet performed comparably to the control diet. Interestingly, the OMN diet demonstrated improved efficiency when evaluating the growth process at both scales. The chemical composition of larvae and frass highlighted the nutritional adequacy of the OMN diet, with the BSF larvae showing adequate protein and lipid content without nutrient catabolism or signs of discomfort. Applying the five freedoms of Brambell’s report as a welfare standard for animal rearing and evaluating performance as an indirect indicator of welfare, the OMN diet appears to promote larval welfare in rearing practices. Full article

Incorporating insect meals into poultry diets has emerged as a sustainable alternative to conventional feed sources, offering nutritional, welfare benefits, and environmental advantages. This study aims to monitor and compare volatile compounds emitted from raw poultry carcasses and subsequently from cooked chicken pieces from animals fed with different diets, including the utilization of insect-based feed ingredients. Alongside the use of traditional analytical techniques, like solid-phase microextraction combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (SPME-GC-MS), to explore the changes in VOC emissions, we investigate the potential of S3+ technology. This small device, which uses an array of six metal oxide semiconductor gas sensors (MOXs), can differentiate poultry products based on their volatile profiles. By testing MOX sensors in this context, we can develop a portable, cheap, rapid, non-invasive, and non-destructive method for assessing food quality and safety. Indeed, understanding changes in volatile compounds is crucial to assessing control measures in poultry production along the entire supply chain, from the field to the fork. Linear discriminant analysis (LDA) was applied using MOX sensor readings as predictor variables and different gas classes as target variables, successfully discriminating the various samples based on their total volatile profiles. By optimizing feed composition and monitoring volatile compounds, poultry producers can enhance both the sustainability and safety of poultry production systems, contributing to a more efficient and environmentally friendly poultry industry. Full article

Invasive insect pests adversely impact human welfare and global ecosystems. However, no studies have used a unified scheme to compare the range dynamics of the world’s worst invasive insect pests. We investigated the future range shifts of 15 of the world’s worst invasive insect pests. Although future range dynamics varied substantially among the 15 worst invasive insect pests, most exhibited large range expansions. Increases in the total habitat suitability occurred in more than ca. 85% of global terrestrial regions. The relative impacts of anthropogenic disturbance and climate variables on the range dynamics depended on the species and spatial scale. Aedes albopictus, Cinara cupressi, and Trogoderma granarium occurred four times in the top five largest potential ranges under four future climate scenarios. Anoplophora glabripennis, Aedes albopictus, and Co. formosanus were predicted to have the largest range expansions. An. glabripennis, Pl. manokwari, Co. formosanus, and So. invicta showed the largest range centroid shifts. More effective strategies will be required to prevent their range expansions. Although the strategies should be species-specific, mitigating anthropogenic disturbances and climate change will be essential to preventing future invasions. This study provides critical and novel insights for developing global strategies to combat the invasions of invasive insect pests in the future. Full article

The use of alternative proteins is becoming more common in pet feed, and insect-based dog foods (IBDFs) are becoming more widely available. However, little research has been conducted to date in respect of the drivers for consumers’ acceptance of IBDF. This study aimed to investigate the acceptance of IBDF among adult UK dog owners and the factors influencing the decision to try and buy such products. A theoretical model was developed following a review of the existing literature. An online survey of 280 participants was carried out and the results were analysed using structural equation modelling (SEM) to test the theoretical model. The following constructs all had a significant impact on attitudes towards IBDF and/or intentions to try and buy IBDF: food preferences for animal welfare, health and environment; attitudes towards uses of animals; beliefs about insect sentience; disgust; perceptions of benefits and risks; and social norms. Social norms had the strongest influence of any single construct. Consumer acceptance of IBDF is multi-faceted including social, cultural and ethical components, and it is likely that the better availability of information and opportunities for consumers to familiarise themselves with IBDF would help to drive consumer acceptance. In order to allow dog owners to make informed decisions in line with their ethical preferences, further research is needed to establish the overall health and welfare implications of IBDF on the animals involved in production, as well as the companion animals, who are the ultimate consumers. Full article

Organic poultry sector needs high-quality proteins sources to meet specific requirements. The EU’s organic regulation forbids synthetic amino acids; therefore, soybean, with its balanced essential amino acid content, has become the most used protein source, though much of it is imported from non-EU countries, with sustainability and crop competition issues; therefore, it should be substituted with a high-protein-value alternative such as insect meal. In this study, 900 Aviagen Savanna broilers were fed with three different organic diets: soybean only (S100), 50% black soldier fly larvae meal (BSL) and 50% soybean (BSL50), and 100% BSL only (BSL100). Broiler performance, welfare, and fatty acids (FA) were analyzed. BSL50 and BSL100 negatively affected growth, while only BSL100 worsened all of the market-related performances. Meat showed a significant increase in saturated FA (SFA) (p < 0.000) and a corresponding decrease in polyunsaturated FA (PUFA), in BSL50 and BSL100, but α-linolenic acid was not affected by BSL50 treatment (p < 0.000). The SFA increase could represent a negative aspect for human health (e.g., cardiovascular diseases), but, as reported by other authors, medium chain SFA, (i.e., lauric acid), may show beneficial effects as well (i.e., antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties). Full article

Nowadays, the global animal industry faces considerable challenges in securing sufficient feed resources. Responding to consumer demands for reduced use of antibiotics in animal nutrition, better animal welfare status, and reduced impact on the environment, there is an increased urgency to develop innovative functional feeds with a reduced environmental footprint and the ability to improve meat quality and safety. In an effort to explore innovative feed ingredients for growing pig diets, the combined dietary supplementation of Tenebrio molitor larvae and chitosan was investigated. An experimental trial was performed with 48 weaned pigs (34 days of life; mixed sex) that were randomly assigned to four treatment groups (with six males and six females each): Group A (control), Group B (supplemented with T. molitor larvae at 10%), Group C (supplemented with chitosan at 0.05%), and Group D (supplemented with both ingredients at 10% and 0.05%, respectively). On the 42nd day of the experimental trial, samples of blood, feces, and carcass parts were taken for analysis. The results indicated that the insect larvae meal significantly improved (p < 0.05) overall performance, increased (p < 0.05) blood red blood cell content, increased meat phenolic content (p < 0.05), improved meat oxidative stability (p < 0.05), and affected meat fatty acid profile (p < 0.05). On the other hand, chitosan had no significant effect on overall performance (p > 0.05), but it significantly increased blood lymphocyte content (p < 0.05), affected the fecal microbiota (p < 0.05), improved meat oxidative stability (p < 0.05), increased meat phenolic content (p < 0.05), and affected meat fatty acid composition (p < 0.05) and (p < 0.05) meat color. Finally, the combined use of both T. molitor and chitosan significantly affected some important zootechnical parameters (p < 0.05), fecal microbial populations (p < 0.05), meat color (p < 0.05), and fatty acid profile (p < 0.05). Further investigation into the potential interaction between insect larvae meals and chitosan in pig diets is advised. Full article

This review presents several alternatives to replace antibiotic therapy and make the European aquaculture industry more friendly and environmentally sustainable. The first part of this review highlights the growing importance of the aquaculture industry worldwide for its ability to supply low-cost proteins and lipids. The second part discusses different strategies for these replacements, from recombinant vaccines to diets with low environmental impact and rich in bioactive molecules that can benefit other species. Specifically, the beneficial effects of bioactive compounds present within insect meals are discussed. In addition, particular focus is placed on the importance of adopting sustainable protocols for fish farming, including supplements such as probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics capable of modulating the gut microbiota as the second brain. Those feed additives can stimulate European farmed species’ immunological systems, growth, and welfare. Full article

Cockroaches harbor two coexisting symbiotic systems: the obligate endosymbiont Blattabacterium cuenotii, and a complex gut microbiota. Blattabacterium is the only bacterium present in the eggs, as the gut microbiota is acquired by horizontal transmission after hatching, mostly through coprophagy. Blattella germanica, a cosmopolitan omnivorous cockroach living in intimate association with humans, is an appropriate model system for studying whether the gut microbiota is essential for the cockroach’s survival, development, or welfare. We obtained a germ-free cockroach population (i.e., containing normal amounts of the endosymbiont, but free of microbes on the insects’ surface and digestive tract). Non-significant differences with the controls were detected in most fitness parameters analyzed, except for a slight shortening in the hatching time of the second generation and a reduction in female weight at 10 days after adult ecdysis. The latter is accompanied by a decrease in uric acid reserves. This starvation-like phenotype of germ-free B. germanica suggests that the microbiota is not essential in this species for survival and development throughout its complete life cycle, but it could participate in complementation of host nutrition by helping with food digestion and nutrient absorption. Full article

The environmental pollution that occurs in direct response to the widespread use of man-made/conventional pesticides results from many chemicals that require a long period of time, often decades, to degrade. The synthetic nature of pesticides also harms animals, beneficial insects, microorganisms, and plants, as well as humans. Fortunately, however, there are many natural pesticides, the so-called biopesticides, that are also effective against pests and more importantly, do not interfere with the well-being of ecosystems. Consequently, most biopesticides are safer for use around people and pets than man-made pesticides because, for example, they can be easily washed away from fruits and vegetables. The natural habitat is a rich resource with a wide selection of plants, many of which are also used to treat diseases in humans, animals, and plants. Out of concern for public health, environmental safety, and the stringent regulation of pesticide residues in agricultural commodities, the use of biopesticides is becoming increasingly important, but questions regarding potential pest resistance to these products may arise, just as is the case with conventional pesticides. Therefore, the performance and potential role of biopesticides in the management of plant pests should be prioritized due to their sustainability and importance to human and environmental welfare. In this review, we propose to highlight a scenario in which we discuss in detail the main constraints posed by the use of pesticides compared to biopesticides, starting with issues regarding their definition and continuing on to issues related to their toxicity and their impact on the environment and human health. Full article

Although the private keeping of reptiles has boomed in most western countries since the millennium, studies dealing with the recognition and promotion of welfare in these reptiles seem to represent a blind spot of scientific attention. The vast majority of studies from the field of animal welfare science still concern mammals and birds. The leopard gecko is probably the most common lizard that is kept in domestic terrariums worldwide. Due to its characteristic as an ecological generalist, it is easy to keep and breed, and it is considered a good “starter reptile” for beginners as it “condones” husbandry mistakes, even for extended periods. However, being a mass species is not a second-class classification. They, too, have an equal claim to good well-being as all animals in human care. The aim of the study was to test the hypothesis of whether an increase in stimulus density leads to an increase in activity and behavioural diversity and, thus, an increase in welfare. For this purpose, 18 leopard geckos were fed insects that were ≤1 cm in size, and both the quantity and quality of behaviour was documented and analysed in the pre-intervention, intervention and post-intervention stages. In addition, it was of interest whether behavioural indicators could be identified that indicate a state of positive well-being. The results showed that this type of enrichment led to a quantitative doubling of the activity levels from the baseline (total of 12,519 behavioural elements) to the intervention (total of 25,366 behavioural elements). And even 11 months after the introduction of small insect feeding (post-intervention total of 23,267 behavioural elements), the activity level was still significantly increased. The behavioural diversity, as the absolute number of behavioural categories across all 18 leopard geckos, also increased, although less than the behavioural intensity, between the baseline (5507 behavioural categories) and intervention (6451 behavioural categories) and between the baseline and post-intervention (6079 behavioural categories). The results clearly show that feeding small insects to leopard geckos is a very efficient tool to increase the welfare of leopard geckos. Attractively, this feeding regime can be implemented by any leopard gecko keeper without significant additional cost or time, and therefore, these methods have a potentially high impact. Full article

Background: Research on the consumer acceptance of alternative meats will aid our understanding of how to increase their consumption and demand. There are limited data on this in the Asian context, particularly comparing various alternative meat products within a singular study. Objective: In a multi-ethnic Asian population, the demographics and attitudes of individuals towards consuming plant-based meat alternatives, cultured meat, and insect-based products were examined. Methods: Adult Singapore residents (n = 1224) were recruited from the Multi-Ethnic Cohort Phase 2 study to participate in an online survey. Demographic information, dietary habits, and attitudes towards livestock products and alternative meats were obtained. Key demographic and attitudinal factors of consumption intent and participants’ willingness to pay were identified using hierarchical ordinal regression. Results: Consumption intent for plant-based meat alternatives was the highest, followed by cultured meat, and then insect-based products. The strongest barrier to consumption intent was the perception of un-naturalness, found mostly towards cultured meat, followed by insect-based products, and then plant-based meat. Familiarity with the products and being male were associated with greater willingness to consume all three types of alternative meats. Attitudinal factors such as environmental sustainability, distrust in biotechnology, food neophobia, and animal welfare influenced the consumption intent of plant-based meat, cultured meat, and insect-based products, respectively. Participants were more willing to pay a higher price for alternative meats if they were concerned about the use of chemicals in animal products. Conclusion: Common and unique factors towards consuming the various alternative meats were identified. Our findings suggest that different communication strategies may be needed to promote the consumption and acceptance of different types of alternative meats. Full article