Southeast Asia Information Port (www.dnyxxg.com) reports that the Singapore Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has officially approved 16 species of insects for consumption, creating an opportunity for Thailand's edible insect exports. Currently, insects widely used globally as new food alternatives include crickets, grasshoppers, short-horned locusts (locusts), mealworms, and cicada pupae.
Insects are gaining increasing acceptance and popularity as a novel food source. Their high protein content has made them an ideal alternative protein source. The global insect protein market is projected to reach $2 billion by 2027. The Singapore government has approved 16 species of insects for consumption.
For example, crickets, grasshoppers, short-horned locusts (locusts), mealworms, and various silkworms are commonly found in the Thai market. However, vendors selling insect products must standardize product information to help consumers make better choices.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has declared insects a "new food alternative" or "food for the future population." Currently, there are over 2 billion insect consumers worldwide. The number of insects recorded as edible is as high as 1,900, including beetles, slugs, honeybees, wasps, ants, grasshoppers, crickets, cicadas, dragonflies, termites, aphids, scale insects, and planthoppers.
The Singapore government has been searching for more sustainable alternative protein sources. Thailand has the potential to export insects, and officials have advised Thai businesses to expand their presence in the Singapore market. It is understood that Thailand produces more than 700 tons of edible insects annually, with cricket farms being the largest producer. Currently, Cambodia is Thailand's largest export market for insects.
