The latest to likely cause intense retching by the majority however is cockroach-flour bread, a rather strange invention by a pair of Brazilian students, Andressa Lucas and Lauren Menegon.
As shocking and skin-crawling as it sounds, cockroaches are not new to the diets of several cultures in Thailand, China, Ghana, Mexico and some parts of the US where cockroach-eating is considered normal and healthy and possibly even delicious.
The Brazilian duo however has taken the widely detested cockroach, considered as pests by most, and made it the basis of the staple food of most cultures – bread.
Studying at the Federal University of Rio Grande, Brazil, Lucas and Menegon grind cockroaches down to a fine powder resembling the texture of flour and make a bread dough with it.
“Cockroaches are a healthy source of food because the insect is made up of 70% protein.
“Cockroaches also contain nine amino acids and high quality fat (omega 3 dan 9),” they said, adding that cockroach flour bread typically had 40% more protein that bread made from wheat flour.
Apparently cockroach flour is suitable for all types of baked goods and the issue of hygiene does not even crop up since the species used is the Nauphoeta Cinere that is bred under special conditions and fed a diet of fruit and vegetables.
For the health conscious who want a bump in their protein intake, here’s your chance to go gluten-free and chomp down on a slice of cockroach-flour bread today – if you can keep from retching long enough.