Abstract

Entomophagy is being promoted as an important part of providing food security for the world’s seven billion people. A great deal is made of the ecological sustainability of insect-eating. However, questions of ethics regarding human-insect relationships are scarcely addressed in this context. Some attempts have been made to apply principles and arguments developed for livestock and pets to insect-human relationships. These appear to be less than satisfactory, as we are still unsure what the appropriate questions with regard to ethics and insects might be. Since ethical stances in a context of complexity, uncertainty, multiple perspectives and competing claims are highly provisional, this paper presents the issues in the format of a conversation between a professional philosopher and professional veterinarian.