Insect-based food products: A scoping literature review

The potential use of edible insects as an alternative animal protein source has recently attracted a great deal of attention in Western countries. This is thanks to their numerous nutritional benefits, in particular in terms of vitamins and essential amino acids, and the need to guarantee food availability for the growing population. The aim of this scoping review is to analyse the current literature published in scientific journals regarding the main issues related to products containing edible insects, to map existing evidence and identify knowledge gaps. The information could serve as a guide for researchers and policy makers in the development of a sustainable innovative edible-insect farming business model. The PRISMA-ScR methodology was used to conduct this scoping review. The string of keywords was searched in three online databases and the screening process produced a total of 116 articles to be reviewed. These findings highlight the crucial issues concerning entomophagy that are currently under discussion, such as edible insect nutritional potential and functional properties, expected health benefits from consumption, consumer acceptability, and potential food safety issues that may arise. The study is limited by the number of databases referred to and by the consultation of papers written only in the English language. The available literature on insect-based food products revealed that edible insect consumption has the potential to bring about many benefits from an environmental, economic, and nutritional point of view. However, this industry faces many challenges in terms of difficulty in obtaining consumer willingness to buy insect-based products and the possibility of health and safety risks arising from their consumption.