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Related: About this forumYou値l Eat Bugs. These Investors Are Betting Millions on It
Greg Sewitz and Gabi Lewis are used to people laughing at them. Three years ago the two college roommates ordered two boxes of live crickets off the Internet, the sort you might feed your pet iguana. They promptly shoved the two shoebox-sized containers of insects into the freezer. Later, they ground the tiny frozen corpses in a blender and, using Lewis own recipe, made a batch of protein bars that replaced whey powder with cricket dust.
They thought the bars tasted great, so they started selling them at gyms, health food stores, farmers markets and their own online store. It was hard at first. Some people were excited at the thought of eating crickets. They do, after all, pack a lot of protein into a few calories. They even managed to get the bars on shelves in a few natural food stores in the northeast. But an awful lot of people just laughed nervously.
No matter. At least one deep-pocketed group is taking the pair quite seriously. Today Sewitz and Lewis company, Exo, announced it has raised $4 million in a series A round of funding led by Accel Foods with participation by investors like Collaborative Fund1, an early investor in tech companies like Kickstarter, TaskRabbit, and Lyft, as well as food companies like Hampton Creek. Exo has now raised a total of $5.6 million
~~~
The key, Sewitz believes, is in using insect protein in foods that people already eat, rather than encouraging people to eat whole insects. According to a Consumer Reports taste test, most insect bars dont have even a hint of insect grossness. Thats because the the powder doesnt have a strong taste, Sewitz says, which means you can use it to add protein to a wide variety of foods. We dont view ourselves as a protein bar company, we view ourselves as an insect protein company, says Sewitz. Well use this as a replacement for whey powder, soy powder, and eventually beef and eggs.
http://www.wired.com/2016/03/investors-bet-millions-wont-balk-eating-bugs/?mbid=social_fb
They thought the bars tasted great, so they started selling them at gyms, health food stores, farmers markets and their own online store. It was hard at first. Some people were excited at the thought of eating crickets. They do, after all, pack a lot of protein into a few calories. They even managed to get the bars on shelves in a few natural food stores in the northeast. But an awful lot of people just laughed nervously.
No matter. At least one deep-pocketed group is taking the pair quite seriously. Today Sewitz and Lewis company, Exo, announced it has raised $4 million in a series A round of funding led by Accel Foods with participation by investors like Collaborative Fund1, an early investor in tech companies like Kickstarter, TaskRabbit, and Lyft, as well as food companies like Hampton Creek. Exo has now raised a total of $5.6 million
~~~
The key, Sewitz believes, is in using insect protein in foods that people already eat, rather than encouraging people to eat whole insects. According to a Consumer Reports taste test, most insect bars dont have even a hint of insect grossness. Thats because the the powder doesnt have a strong taste, Sewitz says, which means you can use it to add protein to a wide variety of foods. We dont view ourselves as a protein bar company, we view ourselves as an insect protein company, says Sewitz. Well use this as a replacement for whey powder, soy powder, and eventually beef and eggs.
http://www.wired.com/2016/03/investors-bet-millions-wont-balk-eating-bugs/?mbid=social_fb
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You値l Eat Bugs. These Investors Are Betting Millions on It (Original Post)
progressoid
Mar 2016
OP
I think it's more an emphasis on the protein. Grinding it into flour is just more palatable.
progressoid
Mar 2016
#3
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)1. I wouldn't eat "flour" made from anything that wasn't a grain of some sort
Not saying I wouldn't eat insects - I have - but that if I want 'flour" I will fucking buy flour. Not powdered animal.
progressoid
(49,991 posts)3. I think it's more an emphasis on the protein. Grinding it into flour is just more palatable.
msongs
(67,417 posts)2. we already eat bugs. just don't recognize them all ground up in tiny bits nt
Agnosticsherbet
(11,619 posts)4. Soylent Green is Cockroaches. nt
itsrobert
(14,157 posts)5. Grind up Republicans?
n/t
Agnosticsherbet
(11,619 posts)6. There's a price inside of every box.
GliderGuider
(21,088 posts)7. Aren't they toxic? nt
Response to GliderGuider (Reply #7)
mackdaddy This message was self-deleted by its author.