Cricket Protein Promises a More Sustainable Dog Food

by  Maureen Wise

What if there was a healthy alternative to mammal- or fowl-meat pet food? So, would you consider feeding bugs to your beloved dog?

As it turns out, insects like crickets are not only a great protein alternative to traditional animal proteins, they’re also a more sustainable choice.

What’s Wrong With Meat?

You may have heard that reducing our meat consumption is one of the most environmentally positive decisions we can make. Scientific American reported about a United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization study that stated: “our diets and, specifically, the meat in them cause more greenhouse gases carbon dioxide (CO2), methane, nitrous oxide, and the like to spew into the atmosphere than either transportation or industry.”

Additionally, the demand for cheap land to graze cattle and grow the crops to feed them is partly responsible for rainforest deforestation. How we manage livestock grazing and the agricultural production of animal feed have the potential to cause desertification.

Many scientists believe that we need to drastically reduce meat (and sugar) consumption if we have any chance of halting climate change. What do you feed your dog if you want to reduce your climate impact? One good choice is cricket protein.

Why Crickets?

With a lifespan of six to 10 weeks, crickets are easy to raise. They eat much less and need much less space than cattle, chickens, pigs, sheep, turkey, or even fish. They also release zero methane, unlike burping cows.

Also, crickets require much less water. Only one gallon of water is required to produce one pound of edible crickets. About 560 gallons of water are consumed to produce one pound of chicken, and about 2,000 gallons of water for beef.

According to PetMD, crickets require only a half-pound of cricket food to produce one pound of cricket powder. On the other hand, it takes 20 pounds of grain to produce one pound of beef and five pounds to produce one pound of chicken.

Also, 80% of a cricket’s body can be eaten while only 55% of poultry and 40% of a cow are edible. There’s a lot more waste in so-called traditional meats and a lot more input to produce less output. Cricket protein is much better for the environment compared to others.

For more visit https://earth911.com/living-well-being/cricket-protein-promises-a-more-sustainable-dog-food/