The Telegraph reports that the EU is conducting a €3m project to promote the eating of insects.
Experts believe insects provide a vital source of nutrition, and will also help save the environment and solve food shortages, says the paper.
According to one study, small grasshoppers provide 20 per cent protein with just six per cent fat, while crickets have been found to be high in calcium, termites rich in iron and giant silkworm moth larvae offering daily copper and riboflavin requirements.
The European commission is said to be offering the money to the research institute with the best proposal for investigating "insects as novel sources of proteins".
