Department of Food Science and Technology, Université Evangélique en Afrique, P.O. Box 3323, Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Department of Food Science and Technology, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, P.O. Box 62000-00200, Nairobi, Kenya.
Sci Rep. 2024 Jul 13;14(1):16186. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-64078-5.
Edible insects are perceived as an incredible opportunity to mitigate the major challenge of sustainably producing healthy foods for a growing world population in the face of climate change uncertainties over the coming decade. In this study, we assessed the nutrient composition and sensory properties of Acheta domesticus, Apis mellifera, Gnathocera trivittata, Gryllotalpa africana, Imbrasia epimethea, Imbrasia oyemensis, Locusta migratoria, Macrotermes subhylanus, Nomadacris septemfasciata, Rhyncophorus phoenicis, Ruspolia differens and Rhynchophorus ferrugineus consumed in Eastern D. R. Congo. The investigated edible insects are highly appreciated and nutritious, with proteins (20.67-43.93 g/100 g) and fats (14.53-36.02 g/100 g) being the major macro-nutrients, proving their potential to improve diets through food enrichment. The high potassium (24-386.67 mg/100 g), sodium (152-257.82 mg/100 g), magnesium (32-64 mg/100 g), iron (5.3-16.13 mg/100 g), calcium (25-156.67 mg/100 g) and zinc (11-19.67 mg/100 g) content make the assessed edible insects a useful mineral-containing ingredient for preventing undernutrition in countries which are plagued by micronutrient deficiencies. A scatter plot of matrices and Pearson's correlations between sensory attributes and nutritional composition showed a negative correlation (r = - 0.45) between protein and appearance. While no strong correlation was observed between nutritional attributes and sensory acceptance, a positive correlation was observed between potassium and aroma (r = 0.50), after-taste (r = 0.50) and acceptability (r = 0.52). Principal component analysis results indicated that the two axes accounted for up to 97.4% of the observed variability in the nutrient composition and sensory attributes of commonly consumed edible insects in the Eastern D. R. Congo. Given the significant delicacy and nutritional potential of edible insects highlighted in this paper, households can rely on the latter to meet their nutritional needs rather than conventional livestock, thus contributing to environmental and financial security through local business opportunities.
食用昆虫被认为是一个巨大的机会，可以缓解在未来十年应对气候变化不确定性的情况下，为不断增长的世界人口可持续生产健康食品的主要挑战。在这项研究中，我们评估了在刚果民主共和国东部食用的 Acheta domesticus、Apis mellifera、Gnathocera trivittata、Gryllotalpa africana、Imbrasia epimethea、Imbrasia oyemensis、Locusta migratoria、Macrotermes subhylanus、Nomadacris septemfasciata、Rhyncophorus phoenicis、Ruspolia differens 和 Rhynchophorus ferrugineus 的营养成分和感官特性。研究发现，这些食用昆虫受到高度赞赏和营养丰富，其蛋白质（20.67-43.93g/100g）和脂肪（14.53-36.02g/100g）含量较高，是主要的宏量营养素，证明了它们通过食物强化改善饮食的潜力。这些昆虫还富含钾（24-386.67mg/100g）、钠（152-257.82mg/100g）、镁（32-64mg/100g）、铁（5.3-16.13mg/100g）、钙（25-156.67mg/100g）和锌（11-19.67mg/100g），这使评估的食用昆虫成为一种有用的含矿物质成分，可以预防受微量营养素缺乏困扰的国家的营养不良。感官属性和营养成分之间的矩阵散点图和 Pearson 相关性分析显示，蛋白质与外观之间呈负相关（r=-0.45）。虽然营养属性和感官接受度之间没有很强的相关性，但钾与香气（r=0.50）、回味（r=0.50）和可接受性（r=0.52）之间呈正相关。主成分分析结果表明，前两个轴解释了刚果民主共和国东部常见食用昆虫的营养成分和感官属性观察到的变异性的 97.4%。鉴于本文强调的食用昆虫的显著美味和营养价值，家庭可以依靠后者来满足他们的营养需求，而不是传统的牲畜，从而通过当地的商业机会为环境和财务安全做出贡献。
