• randomname01@feddit.nl
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    1 year ago

    It’s bonkers to me that people who eat “normal” meat are so opposed to eating insects. Without exception, it basically comes down to not wanting to try new things, which is often tied to conservatism and being scared of change in general.

    It shouldn’t be surprising that the politicians fighting this are right wingers who are against this on a cultural level - aka being afraid of change.

      • tycho@lemmy.sdf.org
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        1 year ago

        The only reason you don’t eat those meats is because you are not used to it. People ate horse meat in Europe regularly until WW2 and cats and dogs are eaten in other part of the world.

        Cats and dogs are no more intelligent than cows but we have emotional attachment and historical use (herding and killing rats) for them so in the Western world we prefer to have them as pets.

      • randomname01@feddit.nl
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        1 year ago

        Like I said

        Without exception, it basically comes down to not wanting to try new things

        Nothing about it is inherently icky. You’re just not used to the idea and therefore don’t want to try it.

        Also, you’ve most likely consumed insects before, because they are also used in food colouring.

        • TheOakTree@beehaw.org
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          1 year ago

          I’m not necessarily accustomed to eating insects… but even the packaged/processed foods we have today are allowed to be a certain percentage of hair/bug/mouse-poop so that it doesn’t become impossible to produce legal food :)

        • hot_milky@lemmy.ml
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          1 year ago

          I grew up eating seafood but I still hate dealing with it if I have to remove shells and clean it. Telling people to suck it up and eat something they don’t want to eat makes no sense to me.

        • HanlonsButterknife@beehaw.org
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          1 year ago

          I like crab, bit I can’t stand soft shell crab. It’s a mouthfeel thing, and I expect a lot of insect food preparations are similar

          • prole@beehaw.org
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            1 year ago

            No, insects are ground into a powder and essentially used like flour. You probably wouldn’t even know you’re eating it if someone didn’t tell you. No mouth feel to speak of.

              • prole@beehaw.org
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                1 year ago

                Yeah, some people eat them that way, but when people talk about some vague conspiracy to get people to eat insects, they’re referring to the flour and being “forced” to eat things made with that instead of wheat flour.

        • hot_milky@lemmy.ml
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          1 year ago

          I actually can’t eat lobster either, the giant sea bugs creep me out. Shrimp I’ll eat but not if I have to remove the shells and such. Obviously people are different and my disgust sensitivity might be higher than normal. I grew up in a household that ate a lot of seafood so it’s not due to lack of trying.

          • prole@beehaw.org
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            1 year ago

            I’m pretty sure everybody removes the shells from shrimp before eating. It’s called a carapace, and roaches have them too.

            Also, whether or not you specifically eat lobster or shrimp is only somewhat relevant. The point is that people in general eat those things. Lots of people. In fact, lobster is considered a delicacy.

            These are essentially insects, and they’ve been a popular part of human cuisine for a very long time. It is hypocritical. Any difference between the two are entirely mental.

              • alyaza [they/she]@beehaw.orgM
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                1 year ago

                “hypocritical” may not be the best word for it but the point that there isn’t much of a difference between some of the foods we already eat (shrimp, lobster, crayfish) and insects and that the primary block to eating insects is a mental one seems pretty inarguable. (it’s honestly also likely people do eat insects and just don’t know they are–they’re everywhere, unintentionally, in the foods we eat.)