Joanne Techow established Ensekta, an insect farm supplying products like chocolate-covered silkworms, this year.
A zoology and business management graduate, she became aware of the positives of entomophagy while researching alternative livelihoods.
She worked with Endoki, a startup specialising in cricket farming, for a year before Ensekta made its debut with silkworms. The company also offers mealworms, whole-roasted or baked into granola and stirfries.
The insect farming industry is growing, but is small in comparison to Europe, the US and Asia, where entomophagy is more established. "In SA most farmers are micro producers who have not yet commercialised their enterprises, so remain under the radar."
Farming itself is relatively simple, she adds. All you need is space for your breeding stock, and the right infrastructure (like lights, fans and heaters), remembering that insects require nutrients and day/night cycles to reproduce.
As for turning insects into food: that, too, is fairly simple. It starts with harvesting, then the bugs are kept food-free for 24 hours so that no undigested material remains in the gut. From there, the insects are blanched for up to five minutes, and processed according to the desired product - roasted, fried or ground into flour.
Techow says that although her market is still niche, interest is on the up.
"Customers are a mix between the health conscious looking for alternatives to traditional protein sources, environmentally aware people who like the fact that insects have a low carbon footprint, and people who love trying something novel."
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