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| - The decision only concerns the approval of insect use in food production.
Pro-Russian sources have spread news claiming that EU residents will have to «forcibly» switch to food containing insects—some reports even state that worms will become the primary source of protein in food products manufactured in Europe. The cause of outrage in the Russian online segment was a recent decision by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which approved the consumption of crickets and mealworms.
However, of course, no one is forcing EU residents to eat worms or other insects. In reality, the decision merely grants permission for manufacturers to use these insects in their products—for example, in the production of cereals, protein bars, meat substitutes, as well as cookies and other baked goods. So far, only two companies have received such approval, and it is limited to a five-year term: a Vietnamese manufacturer for cricket-based products and the French company Nutri’Earth for buffalo worm-based products—larvae of the darkling beetle. After being treated with ultraviolet light, insects are considered completely safe for consumption. However, like any other food product, they can cause allergic reactions; therefore, manufacturers are required to list them in the ingredients and provide information on their thermal processing and recommendations for optimal consumption.
Dishes containing insects are part of the culinary traditions of many countries worldwide. Currently, their demand is growing as insects are as nutritious and rich in beneficial substances as meat and fish, yet their production requires far fewer natural resources than traditional livestock farming. The European Commission and EFSA are now reviewing several more applications for insect-based food production, including flour made from black soldier fly larvae, drone honeybees, house cricket powder, and protein-rich flour from mealworm larvae.
With such manipulative reporting, Russian propaganda attempts to convince its audience that Europe is in a state of decline and crisis, and that people are supposedly being forced to eat «unnatural» food due to resource shortages. This aligns with the broader rhetoric about the «decline of the West,» which is used to discredit European countries and divert attention from internal problems within Russia itself. A similar manipulation was previously examined in the article Manipulation: Germany Claimed That Many Germans Want to Move to Russia «for a Stable Economy.»
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