Studies have found that consumers in Western countries may be more willing to try insects if they are in nonvisible forms (powders and ground meals) than visible forms (whole insects). Research suggests that reducing the disgust factor while also increasing interest to consume insects may encourage consumers to try insects.

To increase the familiarity of entomophagy in the Western market, developing methods to understand and reduce the factors that may negatively affect their acceptance may be necessary. also supports this as Brazilian consumers may be more willing to consume insects (crickets, grasshoppers, and ants) if they were either fried or roasted when prepared. However, Brazilian consumers may have more intention to replace conventional meat products with insect-based proteins, or even whole insects if they are more familiar with insect consumption. In Brazil, consumers may still be influenced by negative perceptions due to safety and nutritional concerns. Small ethnic groups, with limited Western influence, may be more familiar with entomophagy as insects are already consumed as a food source. In Latin American countries, insect consumption is dependent on the region. found that Chinese consumers who have previously consumed insects self-reported less disgust with more intent to consume them than those who have not eaten insects. Though, the acceptance of insects may be more common in countries that have a history of consuming insects. Therefore, insects may offer more opportunities for the food industry and provide accessible alternative protein sources for consumers. By 2023, the market for insect-based food products is projected to reach 50 million USD. Other companies already offer other products containing crickets or mealworms such as protein bars (EXO, Landish, Kriket, and Jimini’s), pasta (Kric8, Hoppa Foods, and Bugsolutely), and snack products such as chips and baked goods (Chirps, Don Bugito, and Circle Harvest). For powders, companies such as EXO, Griopro ®, JR Unique Foods, and Entomo Farms have made cricket powder commercially available in the Western market. There has been a focus on these insect species in sensory and consumer research as well as startup companies developing insect farming for industrial-size production.

Western government bodies have recently deemed these insect species as safe for human consumption as long as they are produced in safe-rearing conditions. However, house crickets ( Acheta domesticus) and mealworm larvae ( Tenebrio molitor) may be the most viable for the Western market. Overall, cricket powder replacement had improved nutritional content with minor changes in quality parameters. Changes in textural properties ( p < 0.05) may be attributed to cricket powder affecting protein solubility and emulsion stability in sausage while gluten formation may be interfered with in the brownies. Cricket powder replacement may lead to noticeable color differences by increasing green and blue coloring in sausage and pasta ( p < 0.05). Overall, this may be attributed to cricket powder being high in protein and fat while also containing dietary fiber. The CP sausage had a higher carbohydrate content than the Control ( p < 0.05). Fat content increased in both the CP pasta and brownies while it decreased in the CP sausage ( p < 0.05). The protein content increased in the CP pasta and brownies ( p 0.05). The products were evaluated for proximate composition and product-dependent parameters. Pork sausage, dried pasta, and chocolate brownie formulations were developed to either contain NO cricket powder (Control) or have cricket powder (CP). This preliminary study was used to develop and evaluate insect-based food products and to utilize them in a future consumer test. Insect powders used in food products may lower the overall quality when compared to conventional counterparts.

Food color machine