A 2013 UN paper extolling the environmental virtues of eating insects for protein, as well as her own curiosity, spurred Angela Skujins to wonder what it would be like if she partook in the practice of entomophagy and adopted a steady diet of creepy-crawly critters. In brief, her seven-day experiment for Vice, in which she chowed down on worms, grasshoppers, roasted crickets, black ants, and even tarantulas earned an "absolutely awful" rating, especially as she admits she's "deathly afraid" of bugs. She purchased her fare for about $130 from a website called Edible Insects, though she had to pick up her dry-roasted fly larvae—said to offer crunch to salads or pastas—from a separate maker called Karma3. And, with the help of some expert advice along the way, she was off.
Skujins, usually a vegan, details each day of her gastronomical journey, which initially drove her to tears after she consumed a maggot stir-fry and a cricket powder shake that tasted like sand. She got more into it as her trial continued (the beer-battered tarantulas she cooked up were "undeniably gourmet"), though her vegan sensibilities and natural revulsion to what showed up on her plate often left her feeling angry, frustrated, and hungry, as she often couldn't finish the whole dish. By the fifth day, her diary entries included "I wish I was dead" and "I hate everyone"—but she does admit to moments of "pride" and "confidence" that saw her through the weeklong experiment. Still, by the end of her attempt, "I wasn’t any closer to adopting bugs into my diet. And with that realization, I decided the world has no hope." Chew on more of her entomological adventure here. (More bugs stories.)
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