BRUSSELS – Dried yellow mealworms could soon be hitting supermarket shelves and restaurants across Europe. The European Union's 27 nations gave the greenlight Tuesday to a proposal to put the Tenebrio molitor beetle's larvae on the market as a “novel food.” The move came after the EU's food safety agency published a scientific opinion this year that concluded worms were safe to eat.
Researchers said the worms, either eaten whole or in powdered form, are a protein-rich snack or an ingredient for other foods.
Allergic reactions may occur for people with pre-existing allergies to crustaceans and dust mites, the Commission said. Insects as food represent a very small market but EU officials said breeding them for food could have environmental