Analysis of fatty acids and volatile components of different types of edible insects

B.Sc. Dominique Cero, BS

Master's thesis

Abstract:

With the current rise in population, meat consumption is continually increasing. The intensification of livestock production has been continually practiced to support this increasing meat consumption. However, it is deemed to be unsustainable due to its negative impacts on the environment as the livestock industry continues to be a significant contributor to the global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. To address this problem, edible insects have been studied as a potential alternative to meat in the human diet. To broaden the knowledge regarding edible insects, this study aimed to determine the volatile compounds and fatty acid composition of edible insects, namely honeybee larvae, crickets, and superworms, upon application of food processing techniques, specifically oven-drying, roasting and freeze-drying. The results showed that all three food processing techniques are effective in lowering the pH and water activity values to acceptable levels. The fatty acid profile of the insects showed to be promising as it is comparable with the fatty acids found in meat, and freeze-drying showed to be effective in retaining high content of fatty acids. Volatile compounds profile for different insects showed that volatile compounds characterized with pleasant odours have been detected. Results also showed that for all three insects, freeze-drying showed to have the least number of volatile compounds present.

Keywords

fatty acids, volatile compounds, chemical composition, entomophagy, GC/MS, edible insects

Language used: English

Date on which the thesis was submitted / produced: 24. 4. 2023

Thesis defence

• Date of defence: 29. 5. 2023
• Supervisor: doc. Klára Urbanová, Ph.D.
• Reader: Pavlína Kyjaková, externi

Czech University of Life Sciences Prague

Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences

Master programme:
Agri-food Systems and Rural Development