ARTICLE FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE July 2023 65 Furthermore, insect farming needs significantly less land and water than livestock rearing. Although it produces around 20% of the world's caloric needs, livestock takes up approximately 80% of the agricultural land [6]. In addition, methane and nitrous oxide produced by livestock rearing have a significantly higher global warming potential than carbon dioxide. The waste derived from livestock, including manure and ammonia, also contributes to environmental pollution, causing nitrification and soil acidification. Regarding ammonia emissions, crickets, locusts, and mealworm larvae also compare favorably to pigs, with a tenfold difference [1,3]. The volume of water needed to produce 1 kg of edible insects is considerably lower than cattle rearing [1]. These findings show that insect farming appears more sustainable than traditional forms of protein production. A CRITICAL RESOURCE FOR OUR FUTURE – ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT Insects are the most diverse group of animals on earth and a natural resource for our future, and it is crucial to address how insects will increasingly play a role in the food and feed sector. Insects are considered a low environmental impact alternative and a high-quality protein source. From a nutritional point of view, they are a good source of amino acids, unsaturated fatty acids, micronutrients, and fiber. Moreover, they are also rich in minerals, vitamins, and several bioactive compounds with potential health benefits [2]. The effect of the production of conventional protein sources on the environment is considerable, causing deforestation, contaminating surface waters, spreading chemical pollutants, and generating greenhouse gases, and should be substantially decreased [1,2]. The recent development of insect production suggests that it's crucial to have a comprehensive and holistic approach to performing their environmental impact assessment. However, it is a complex task considering the variety of insect species, production scales, feed ingredients, insect farming conditions, and the manufacture of different insect products [7]. Vinci, et al. [8] showed the usefulness of the Life Cycle Assessment to evaluate the impacts of protein production from mealworms and pork on the ecosystem, resources, and human health. The authors revealed a significant effect on the ecosystem, land use, climate-altering emissions, and fossil resources from pork production, in contrast with mealworm protein production. The low influence of insect protein production and the high nutritional values make edible insects a sustainable solution to growing food demand and potential future food. In another life cycle analysis study, cricket production has a lower environmental impact than pork farms. These findings were considered a valuable tool for evaluating the sustainability of animal-based food production [9]. The effectiveness, economic viability, and environmental impact of insect production must all be analyzed [7]. Insects have the potential to be an ecological, high-quality solution to meet future protein demands, and some insect proteins have proven equivalent or superior to soy protein in terms of nutritional value [2]. In addition, these organisms represent a future biological resource where their full potential has not been explored.
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