Desenvolvimento e caracterização da farinha das larvas do tenébrio gigante (Zophobas morio) visando sua utilização na indústria de alimentos

Abstract

Population growth has made it imperative to search for new alternative food sources that have less costly production boundary conditions, are more environmentally friendly and have great nutritional value, in particular, high protein value. Within this perspective, insects are one of the potential sources of human food, being widely studied and evaluated in recent years. About 2000 species of insects are already consumed regularly around the world; practice known as entomophagy. The giant mealworm (Zophobas morio) proves to be a promising food source due to its high protein content and feed conversion rate; in addition to the low cost of cultivation and production when compared to cattle and poultry activities. The aim of this work was to develop and characterize the giant mealworm flour, envisioning its possible use in the food industry. The larvae were slaughtered through thermal shock and the meal obtained through the physical processes of cooking, pressing and drying in an oven, respectively. The meal was evaluated for centesimal composition, acute toxicity and physical-chemical stability at fortnightly intervals during the 60-day storage period, through analysis of pH, color, water activity (Aw) and reactive substances to thiobarbituric acid (TBARS). The data obtained were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey's test at a significance level of 5%. Within the analyzes carried out, mealworm flour showed a non-toxic character and high protein (70.49%) and lipid (14.12%) contents, in addition to having a stable pH and practically not having undergone significant changes in Aw and TBARS values during the storage period. The results indicate that the developed product presents the necessary conditions for its consumption, and can also be used in the protein enrichment of different food formulations.