Insects on the daily catering menu at Montana State University

Insects on a college campus catering menu? Unheard of! At least until the Fall of 2020 at Montana State University (MSU).  Developed by chefs, approved by the campus sanitarian, and fully supported by the catering general manager, eight edible insect dishes have been officially added to the MSU menu including Chaupalines Salsa, Cricket Flour Falafels, and Black Ant Shrimp Sate to name a few.  The decision to put edible insects on the menu was an outcome of 32 years of effort. Beginning in 1989, faculty from across campus, students, and culinary services staff, have hosted years of annual campus-wide “Bug Buffets”.  The first Bug Buffet was born as a gathering for a few dozen students to taste the edible insects they had been learning about in class.  Since then, the Bug Buffet has grown into a large annual week full of events including guest chefs, film festivals, field trips to a local cricket farm, student cook-offs, an academic conference  with guest researchers and a Bug Buffet open to the public with more than 1,000 guests year after year.  Sponsors of Bug Buffet come not only from campus departments but also from edible insect industry leaders and community businesses.