Bugs to the rescue: using insects as animal feed could cut deforestation – report

Insect protein in animal feed could replace 20% of the UK’s soya consumption by 2050, according to a report by WWF. The study, which sets out a plan for the UK to accelerate the adoption of insect protein in animal feed, also found that just under half of the demand for the protein could be met by British producers. Soya has become a key ingredient of animal feed but rising demand for the crop has been linked to deforestation in South America . More than 1m tonnes of soya used by UK livestock farmers in 2019 could have been linked to deforestation, according to estimates . Mollie Gupta, WWF forest commodities manager, said the findings quantified for the first time the benefits of insect protein for the UK. “We’ve been looking at insect protein as an alternative to soya for 18 months. We always thought it had huge potential but to say that it will be able to reduce up to a fifth of our soya imports was huge.” Fulfilling this potential will require overcoming major hurdles, chief among them legislation. There is a double legislative burden because animal feed regulation affects what they can be fed, and what […]

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