What began as a small effort in FAO’s Forestry Department to recognize traditional livelihood practices and sustainably managed habitats is unfolding into a broad based effort to look into the multiple dimensions of insect gathering and rearing.

In an effort to explore the opportunities insect rearing and gathering offer, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the Wageningen University, with the support of the Government of the Netherlands, organized an expert consultation on insects as food and feed at FAO’s headquarters in Rome. This expert consultation brought together — for the first time ever — some 40 international experts and entrepreneurs from different aspects of insect rearing, plant protection and food engineering in animated discussions with FAO experts from different backgrounds and disciplines.

 The outcome of this meeting together with briefing materials and key outputs are available in English (see right column).