Acceptance of entomophagy among Canadians: Insights from Visitors to the Montreal Insectarium

As global food systems face mounting sustainability pressures, insects are gaining attention as a promising alternative protein source. Yet, entomophagy remains culturally unfamiliar or stigmatized in many Western countries, including Canada. This study investigates attitudes toward insect consumption among 252 adult visitors to the Montreal Insectarium—a public institution promoting insect education and biodiversity awareness. Participants completed a structured questionnaire evaluating willingness to consume various insect-based foods, motivations and barriers, and demographic predictors of acceptance. Overall, 44% of participants reported openness to eating insects, though fewer were willing to include them in their regular diet (27%) or prepare them at home (17%). Acceptance was highest for products where insect content was less visible, such as baked goods made with cricket flour. Key motivators included curiosity, perceived health benefits, and environmental concern, while major deterrents were disgust, food safety concerns, and insect-related fears. Ordinal logistic regression analyses revealed consistent gender effects, with men significantly more willing than women to consume a variety of insect-based foods. Men also showed greater prior experience with insect consumption and were more likely to include insects in their diets or try them in restaurants. Age alone was not a consistent predictor, but significant interactions with gender revealed contrasting trends. Moreover, participants with graduate degrees showed greater openness to experimenting with insect-based ingredients when cooking, and were more likely to accept insect-based cheese. Strong positive correlations were found between willingness to include insects in one’s diet and prior insect consumption, as well as with willingness to cook them at home. A weaker but still significant correlation also linked dietary inclusion of insects with general openness to culinary innovation. Together, these findings underscore the complex interplay of gender, age, and education in shaping entomophagy acceptance.

随着全球粮食系统面临日益严峻的可持续性压力，昆虫作为极具前景的替代蛋白质来源正受到广泛关注。然而，包括加拿大在内的诸多西方国家中，民众在文化层面仍对食用昆虫（entomophagy）感到陌生或存有偏见。本研究针对蒙特利尔昆虫馆——一家致力于推广昆虫教育与生物多样性认知的公立机构——的252名成年参观者，调查其对昆虫食用的态度。参与者填写了结构化问卷，内容涵盖各类昆虫基食品的食用意愿、食用动机与阻碍因素，以及影响接受度的人口统计学预测变量。总体而言，44%的参与者表示愿意尝试食用昆虫，但愿意将其纳入日常饮食（27%）或在家自制相关食品（17%）的比例更低。昆虫成分隐蔽度较高的产品接受度最高，例如使用蟋蟀粉制作的烘焙食品。核心驱动因素包括好奇心、感知到的健康益处与环保关切，而主要阻碍因素则为厌恶感、食品安全顾虑及对昆虫的恐惧。有序逻辑回归分析显示，性别对接受度存在一致影响：男性相较于女性，更愿意食用各类昆虫基食品。此外，男性此前拥有昆虫食用经验的比例更高，也更愿意将昆虫纳入日常饮食，或在餐厅尝试相关食品。仅年龄并非稳定的预测变量，但与性别的显著交互效应则呈现出相反的趋势。拥有研究生学历的参与者在烹饪时更愿意尝试使用昆虫基食材，也更愿意接受昆虫基奶酪产品。将昆虫纳入日常饮食的意愿与此前的昆虫食用经验，以及在家自制昆虫食品的意愿之间，存在显著正相关关系。尽管相关性较弱但仍具有统计学意义的是，将昆虫纳入日常饮食的意愿与普遍的烹饪创新开放性之间存在关联。综上，本研究结果凸显了性别、年龄与教育水平在影响昆虫食用接受度方面的复杂交互作用。