Eleventh International Conference on Food Studies

Abstract

In 2013, FAO stated that insect production for food and feed could become an economic opportunity for rural women in developing countries. To achieve this role it is necessary to assess the perspectives towards establishment of a sustainable edible insect value chain and standardize farming methodologies to be profitable to rural women from Colombia. Therefore, we carried out two experiments: the first focusing on the effects of density on growth performance of Gryllodes sigillatus at different initial densities and the second focusing on the effects of dietary inclusion of agricultural by-products on growth performance and proximate composition of G. sigillatus. Results of first experiment showed that growth performance is affected negatively with increased stocking density. In the second experiment, the results indicate potential of agricultural by-products generated by rural women to alter positively the growth performance, and proximate composition of G. sigillatus. Additionally, the intentionally of the rural women to implement cricket farms or micro-entrepreneurship around insect production were evaluated after the development of ethnographies and empowerment, entrepreneurship, and cricket production workshops. Finally, the results of the elaboration of culinary recipes with cricket powder incorporating cultural aspects of the context of La Mesa, Cundinamarca, will be presented. The results of this project represent the first attempt in Colombia to create a social business model of cricket production involving rural women, academy, private sector, and local authorities.