Why Crunch Through Crickets When You Could Choose Plants?
Humans have spent centuries looking everywhere but the obvious for protein. We’ve enslaved other animals, tortured them, sliced them open, and turned them into “products” to feed our addictions to flesh and secretions. Now, some propose yet another exploitation: insects. But let’s be clear — no one needs to crunch through a cricket or farm worms to meet their protein needs.
Recent studies show the vast majority of people in Western countries recoil at the idea of insect-based foods. In the UK alone, just a quarter of people are even willing to try insects, and most insist nothing could persuade them otherwise. And for good reason: beyond disgust, there’s evidence that insects can feel pain. Using them as “resources” repeats the same tired supremacist mindset — that other beings exist to serve us.
Meanwhile, a far more obvious, ethical, and effective solution stands right in front of us: plants. Sunflower meal, for example — currently tossed to imprisoned farmed animals as feed — has been shown to be a “promising” new base for plant-based proteins. Researchers in Brazil and Germany have demonstrated that sunflower meal can be upcycled to create nutrient-dense, protein-rich meat alternatives for humans directly. Instead of feeding crops to animals and then killing them for a fraction of the protein, we can simply eat the plants ourselves.
Sunflower meal delivers impressive nutrition, including high levels of protein, healthy fats, and minerals like magnesium, manganese, zinc, and iron. It has a neutral taste, making it easy to incorporate into all kinds of dishes without the earthy or bitter notes some plant proteins carry. Products using sunflower protein are already on the market, showing we don’t have to wait for lab-grown gimmicks or insect hype to get started.
Investing in insect protein isn’t just misguided — it actively diverts resources away from proven, scalable plant-based solutions. The plant-based sector isn’t a future dream. It’s here. And it’s working.
When it comes to transitioning away from animal use, we don’t need to hector people into eating grubs or trick them into entomophagy. We need to offer better options: food that tastes great, is accessible, and aligns with the basic principle that no one should be treated as a commodity.
The bottom line? Plants can do the job — without breeding, confining, or killing anyone. We don’t need new victims; we need a new mindset.