Considered high in protein and low in fat, they could be an important food raw material of the future: insects. For a long time, however, crickets, mealworms and the like were reserved for animals as animal feed. With the new Novel Food Regulation, the EU has cleared the ground for insects as food in 2018. Start-ups in particular have discovered this niche for themselves and are moving forward with novel creations such as insect burgers or fitness bars. With Native Food GmbH another start-up is now ready to enrich the market with insect food.

Crackers made from cricket flour with herbs

The team around start-up founder Camilo Carrillo Wilisch has been experimenting on a cracker made of cricket flour for almost two years now, which is now set to conquer the market in two different flavours - rosemary and onion herbs. The high-protein nibble called Pinaks consists of gluten-free oat flakes in addition to insect meal and herbs.

Crowdfunding campaign running

The Berlin team is currently looking for investors on the crowdfunding platform Startnext. Since the beginning of the campaign in mid-October, Native Food has already managed to convince 180 supporters and, with 6,587 euros, has raised more than half of the targeted funding target of 10,000 euros.

Production of the first large batch planned

With the money raised, the start-up company intends to finance the industrial production of the first large batch of its insect crackers and thus offer an alternative to conventional snacks. The campaign at Startnext will run until 20 November 2020.

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