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Danish supermarket sells insects – for two days

The Local Denmark
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Danish supermarket sells insects – for two days
Around two billion people worldwide already regularly eat insects. Photo: Takoradee/WikiCommons"

An Irma location in Copenhagen was the first in the country to sell edible insects to customers but the grasshoppers and meal worms only remained on shelves for two days before being pulled.

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With the global population expected to hit nine billion by the year 2050, many food and agriculture experts have warned that we need to find new ways to feed our growing planet. 
 
One solution that has been bandied about is to get Western cultures to embrace the idea of eating insects. 
 
According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, around two billion people worldwide regularly incorporate insects into their diet. 
 
Aside from a few headline-generating attempts, such as ‘world’s best restaurant’ Noma serving live ants, the West has been hesitant to embrace the idea of chowing down on a handful of creepy crawlies. 
 
And if the recent experience of high-end supermarket chain Irma is any indicator, it looks like it will be awhile before entomophagy becomes ‘a thing’ in Denmark. 
 
Irma’s flagship location in inner Copenhagen was the first in the nation to sell frozen grasshoppers, meal worms and moth larvae. The protein-rich bugs hit shelves on Wednesday of last week, but only the quickest of early adapters were able to get their hands on a package. 
 
By the end of the week, Irma had pulled the insects from its freezers. 
 
“The goods are no longer for sale due to an unearthing of the authorities’ views on selling these types of products,” Irma spokesman Martin Hansen told radio station P4 København. 
 
Hansen offered no further details on the decision and declined to say if or when Irma would put the insects back on sale. 
 
For now then, the only options Danes have for eating insects remain either spending thousands of kroner at Noma or heading out to the backyard with a shovel and dining for free. 

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