Post
by EthioRedSea » 20 Dec 2020, 15:42
Amhara Muslims in Wollo eat grasshoppers. Somali and Kenyan Muslims also do. This is in general part of Muslim tradition. Tigray do not have Muslims and they do not eat. Muslims in Eritrea eat grasshoppers. That is normal for them. Most Eritreans eat grasshoppers that is why some think Tigrayans eat too. Tigray eat only what is prescribed in The Holy Bible. In some cultures, eating locusts is normal as the following abstract from "The Conversation" from April 24, 2020 demonstrates.
Eating locusts
Eating swarming locusts wasn’t always dangerous, and it was a widespread practice wherever plagues occurred - such as in Africa, the Middle East and South Asia, and North America. Plagues were an ancient challenge that many communities addressed by turning them into food.
For centuries Native Americans had locusts, and other insects, in their diets. These included locust swarms. For instance, when the swarms encountered the Great Salt Lake, millions would get caught in the water and die. These eventually ended up on the lake shores, already salted by the water, ready for collection.
In the Middle East, such as Israel, eating swarming locusts was also a strategy. Grasshoppers and locusts are, in fact, the only halal insect in local diets.
In parts of Africa, locusts and grasshoppers have also been eaten for centuries. And, in some places, still are today.
For instance in Madagascar, during locust swarm outbreaks with crops gone, locusts were used as both food and animal feed. During my research in Madagascar I found that this is still the case today.
But given that governments are now turning to chemicals to manage the outbreaks, the correct advice is that people should not eat the locusts or use them for animal feed. Chemical residues pose a major health risk.
