The current food consumption habits in the United States, especially surrounding the meat industry, will not be feasible in the future due to depletion of resources (Van der Weele 2019). Unfortunately this does not seem to be enough to sway people’s opinions about eating insects because of the visceral, cultural response.
Smiderle, Sloan, and Kains (2016) tested people’s willingness to eat insects in various ways, including processed and unprocessed insects. The people included in research would fit into the category of Western identity, as compared to a non-Western identity. The research showed that Westerners are less likely to consume insects, especially in the unprocessed form (Ruby and Rozin 2019, Padulo et al 2022).
Legendre, Baker and Young (2018) conducted similar research, looking into consumption of insects in South Korea. In the past, insects have been incorporated into South Korean diets because of their nutritional value, however in recent years the number of people in South Korea willing to incorporate insects into their diet has declined. Legendre, Baker and Young (2018) suggests that the decline in insect eating is due to Western influence on the food culture in South Korea, connecting the number of Western restaurants to the decline in insect eating.
A small percentage of people in the United States have begun to eat insects due to their environmental value. Beans (2022) and Ali (2016) suggest that in order for insects to become ‘normal’ in people’s diets the language and discourse surrounding insects must change. Rather than insects being seen as negative, insects must be marketed food. Some marketing tactics for insects have been implemented, as the eco-friendly option full of nutrients and protein (Ali 2016).