School of Nutrition and Dietetics, Acadia Univ., Wolfville, NS, B4P 2R6, Canada.
J Food Sci. 2020 Mar;85(3):781-788. doi: 10.1111/1750-3841.15043. Epub 2020 Feb 4.
In recent years, the use of insects in food products has increased. Insects are a sustainable ingredient that is high in protein. However, consumption in Western countries is low, and this may be due to poor sensory qualities, expense, availability, and food neophobia. The objectives of this study were to determine Atlantic Canadian consumers' attitudes toward entomophagy and to assess consumers' perception of cricket-based protein powders. There were two phases to this study: in phase one, participants (n = 107) completed a survey about their attitudes toward consuming insects (Specific Beliefs and Attitudes about Insect Consumption Scale created by Ruby, Rozin, & Chan 2015), and in the second phase, participants (n = 102) were asked to evaluate four different protein powders (two contained crickets) using 9-point hedonic scales and a CATA questionnaire. Then, the participants were again asked to complete the aforementioned survey. Before consuming cricket protein powder, most participants thought that insects were a sustainable protein source, but also thought that the consumption of insects was undesirable. However, after consuming cricket protein powder, the participants were willing to buy cricket powder and were willing to recommend it to their friends. For insect consumption to become acceptable in the Western world, it will need to be integrated slowly to reduce consumers' fear and negative attitudes. Protein powders are consumed by many people in the Western world and are an excellent candidate to allow for the integration of insects into their diets. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: This study demonstrated that consumers in Atlantic Canada are more willing to eat insects after having tried them in protein powders. Additionally, protein powders represent a familiar context for consumers and allow for the acceptable integration of cricket powder. Consumers are willing to buy and recommend crickets to their friends after consuming them (in a processed form); however, they still have concerns that insects may carry harmful microbes and toxins.
近年来，昆虫在食品中的应用有所增加。昆虫是一种高蛋白的可持续成分。然而，在西方国家的消费较低，这可能是由于较差的感官品质、价格、可用性和食物厌恶。本研究的目的是确定大西洋加拿大消费者对食用昆虫的态度，并评估消费者对蟋蟀基蛋白粉的看法。这项研究分为两个阶段：在第一阶段，参与者（n=107）完成了一项关于他们对食用昆虫的态度的调查（由 Ruby、Rozin 和 Chan 于 2015 年创建的特定昆虫食用信念和态度量表），在第二阶段，参与者（n=102）被要求使用 9 分喜好量表和 CATA 问卷评估四种不同的蛋白粉（两种含有蟋蟀）。然后，参与者再次完成上述调查。在食用蟋蟀蛋白粉之前，大多数参与者认为昆虫是一种可持续的蛋白质来源，但也认为食用昆虫是不可取的。然而，在食用蟋蟀蛋白粉后，参与者愿意购买蟋蟀蛋白粉，并愿意向他们的朋友推荐它。为了使昆虫消费在西方世界被接受，需要缓慢地进行整合，以减少消费者的恐惧和负面态度。蛋白粉在西方国家被许多人消费，是将昆虫纳入其饮食的理想选择。实际应用：本研究表明，大西洋加拿大的消费者在尝试过蛋白粉中的昆虫后，更愿意食用昆虫。此外，蛋白粉为消费者提供了一个熟悉的背景，允许以可接受的方式将蟋蟀粉整合到饮食中。消费者愿意购买并向朋友推荐蟋蟀（经过加工）；然而，他们仍然担心昆虫可能携带有害微生物和毒素。
