Meijer N, Safitri R A, Tao W, Hoek-Van den Hil E F
Wageningen Food Safety Research (WFSR), Part of Wageningen University & Research, PO Box 230, 6700 AE Wageningen, Akkermaalsbos 2 (building 123), the Netherlands.
Wageningen Food Safety Research (WFSR), Part of Wageningen University & Research, PO Box 230, 6700 AE Wageningen, Akkermaalsbos 2 (building 123), the Netherlands.
Animal. 2025 Feb 25:101468. doi: 10.1016/j.animal.2025.101468.
Farmed insects are increasingly used as a more sustainable and circular alternative protein source for food and feed. As a new type of livestock animal in the European Union (EU), farmed insects are subject to general legislation applicable to all food and feed production, as well as certain provisions that are more specific. Presented here is a comprehensive overview on legislation for farmed insects in the EU, as related to food and feed safety aspects. The currently applicable legislation is described, and placed in the context of historical developments and academic literature, and suitability and limitations of these laws from different perspectives are reflected upon. Specific topics that are discussed relate to: insects as feed (live, as processed animal proteins, and fat and derived products); insects as a 'novel food'; feed materials provided to insects (substrate); applications for insect excrement (frass), and; compliance and legal limits. The latter section includes a discussion of ethical and welfare requirements for farmed insects. Finally, a conclusion and future outlook are provided. Legal changes to lift barriers for the insect farming chain should be assessed in light of both safety and circularity demands. It is further recommended that policymakers consider defining insect-specific limits for a variety of hazards, both for substrate and insect biomass for food/feed. This should take into account scientific evidence on unavoidable carry-over from substrates as well as potential adverse effects on insect welfare.
养殖昆虫越来越多地被用作一种更具可持续性和循环性的替代蛋白质来源，用于食品和饲料。作为欧盟（EU）的一种新型家畜，养殖昆虫要遵守适用于所有食品和饲料生产的一般立法以及某些更具体的规定。本文全面概述了欧盟养殖昆虫在食品和饲料安全方面的立法情况。描述了当前适用的立法，并将其置于历史发展和学术文献的背景下，从不同角度反思了这些法律的适用性和局限性。讨论的具体主题包括：昆虫作为饲料（活体、加工动物蛋白、脂肪及衍生产品）；昆虫作为“新型食品”；提供给昆虫的饲料原料（基质）；昆虫粪便（虫粪）的应用，以及；合规性和法定限量。后一部分讨论了养殖昆虫的伦理和福利要求。最后给出了结论和未来展望。应当根据安全和循环性要求评估消除昆虫养殖链障碍的法律变化。还建议政策制定者考虑为各种危害确定昆虫特定的限量，包括基质以及用于食品/饲料的昆虫生物质的限量。这应考虑到关于基质不可避免的残留以及对昆虫福利潜在不利影响的科学证据。
