H-E-B Grocery Stores to Begin Carrying Austin-made Roasted Cricket Snacks

If you don't eat bugs because you haven't been able to find them in convenient snack packs and whole-roasted in savory seasonings, your wait is over.Crickets farmed by Austin-based Aspire Food Group are scheduled to go on sale at many H-E-B grocery stores beginning next week. The insects will be sold ground up in protein bars and bites with flavors like "nutty chocolate chip," or crispy in mixes of spices like "Texas barbecue" with only the legs and antennae removed.Either way, the rollout is a big step for Aspire -- and for the nascent edible insect movement overall -- because of the potential to broaden the appeal of bugs as environmentally sustainable sources of protein beyond what currently is a niche U.S. market. While insects are standard human fare in many countries worldwide, total sales in the United States added up to no more than $25 million annually last year, according to analytics firm Persistence Market Research, a figure that is growing but constitutes a rounding error compared to the estimated $67 billion-plus U.S. market for cattle.  Continue reading...