SINGAPORE: A local company that sells insects as snack food said it hit “another historical milestone” on Thursday (Jan 23) when its edible crickets were put on sale at the Sheng Siong supermarket chain.
Insectyumz said in an Instagram post that it had launched its snack pack of Tom Yum-flavoured edible crickets just in time for Chinese New Year festivities. They can be purchased in the snack section of all 75 Sheng Siong branches.
Insectyumz’s parent company, Insect Food, calls itself Singapore’s first and biggest brand of insect food for people. It was launched in July last year, shortly after the Singapore Food Agency announced its approval of edible insects for human consumption.
Insect Food says on its website that it aims to “change human perceptions and fears towards edible insect food. If we want to save the planet, the future of food is insects.”
Aside from crickets, the company intends to bring in edible silkworms, locusts, white grubs, and honeybees to Sheng Siong and other supermarkets.
When someone shared a photo of the snack pack on sale in a local Reddit thread, many were open to the idea. Eating crickets, after all, is not unknown in parts of Southeast Asia, and some Singaporeans who have travelled to these parts have partaken as well.
What they found harder to swallow, perhaps, was the price of the snack, which was shown to be $4.90 for a 35-gram pack.
Some commenters joked that it would definitely be cheaper to catch and cook the insects themselves, which, of course, would not pass the SFA’s rigorous standards. Others said this is exactly why they’re pricey, given that they need to be grown on farms.
Still, others were unconvinced.
“At this price, no way am I choosing insects over meat and tofu for protein,” one wrote.
“For $4.90 I can just get a good sandwich. Why would I eat a cricket?” asked another.
A Reddit user who has tried the snack said it tasted “quite good” due to the Tom Yum flavouring. They added that they had also tried the company’s mealworm snack, which they said tasted a little bit like peanuts.
In April 2023, the SFA said it would soon approve 16 species of insects, including crickets, silkworm cocoons, and grasshoppers, which meant they could be sold in Singapore for human consumption.
The agency launched a public consultation on the regulation of insects and insect products from Oct 5 to Dec 4, 2022. /TISG
Read also: Singapore Food Agency set to greenlight 16 insect species for food consumption