The global food system faces key challenges: ensuring sufficient high-quality protein, reducing environmental impact, and managing waste and by-products. Certain insect species can upcycle waste streams and valorize underused industrial by-products. Since about 70% of production costs and 50% of environmental impact are linked to feed, optimizing this element is essential for a mature insect industry.

Understanding insect nutritional and dietary requirements reduces both financial and ecological costs while increasing yields. This allows high-quality protein production, reduces associated environmental impact, and transforms waste into valuable resources. However, fundamental knowledge on insect nutritional physiology remains fragmented despite significant growth in studies over the past 15 years. Most research focused on limited ingredients, leaving major gaps in understanding.

This project establishes a platform to collect and synthesize fragmented knowledge from academia and industry, making it publicly accessible. It maps the state of the art, identifies research gaps, and fosters new projects within an open network. Acting as a bridge between applied and fundamental research, it enhances collective knowledge and creates opportunities for innovation and business growth.

Details on COST action
MoU - 040/24
CSO Approval date - 17/05/2024
Start date - 14/10/2024
End date - 13/10/2028

Action Chair:
Dr. Dennis Oonincx, Wageningen University, Netherlands

Action members from IBISS:
Dr. Larisa Ilijin, Department of Insect Physiology and Biochemistry, IBISS
Dr. Olga Radulović, Department of Plant Physiology, IBISS
Dr. Martin Raspor, Department of Plant Physiology, IBISS