Exercises

Bugs for life

Photo courtesy of Bangkok Post

Student Weekly has featured many stories over the years about the catching, buying, selling and eating of all sorts of creepy crawlers. A recent UN conference held in Chiang Mai wants to promote insect eating internationally. Read the story from the Bangkok Post about putting bugs on the menu.

Crickets, caterpillars and grubs, which are high in protein and minerals, could be an important food source during famine, droughts and other emergencies, according to scientists who attended a UN-sponsored conference in March. Their aim is to promote bugs as a food source.

�I definitely think that insects can help,� said German biologist V.B. Meyer-Rochow, one of the 36 scientists from 15 countries who participated in the conference.

GOING GLOBAL

Some of the proposals made were more down to earth than others. A Japanese scientist suggested bug farms on spacecraft to feed astronauts, noting that it would be more practical than raising cows or pigs.

Australian, Dutch and US researchers said that more and more restaurants in their countries are serving bugs and grubs.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates that 1,400 species of insects and worms are eaten in almost 90 countries in Africa, Latin America and Asia. Researchers at the conference detailed how crickets and silk worms are eaten in Thailand, grubs and grasshoppers in Africa and ants in South America.

�In places where there�s a level of acceptance, insects can very well be seen as part of the solution to hunger,� Bangkok-based forestry officer Patrick Durst said.

WATCH WHAT YOU EAT

Patrick Durst became interested in consuming insects during his years working in Bangkok, where crickets and bamboo worms are sold as food by street vendors. He believes, however, that there are questions about the safety of eating bugs and potential dangers from over-harvesting them.

Netherlands entomologist Arnold van Huis blames Western bias against eating insects for the failure of aid agencies to add bugs as a source of food.

�They really have to change,� he said. �I would urge organisations to take a different attitude toward this. It�s excellent food, and with precautions it�s sustainable .�

Exercise

Read the story. Then, answer the following reading comprehension questions.

1. Where was the conference held?

2. Who does Professor Arnold van Huis blame for not promoting insects as a source of food?

3. Which insect is mentioned as a food source in South America?

4. What suggestion did a Japanese scientist give during the conference?

	grub (n): the young form of an insect, that looks like a small fat worm famine (n): a lack of food during a long period of time in a region drought (n): a long period of time when there is little or no rain proposal (n): a formal suggestion or plan practical (adj): right or sensible; likely to be successful harvest (v): to cut and gather crops or other food sources entomologist (n): a person who studies insects bias (n): a strong feeling in favour of or against something, often not based on fair judgement precaution (n): something that is done in advance in order to prevent problems or to avoid danger sustainable (adj): that can continue or be continued for a long time