I recently came across an article in Scientific American by Chef Bun Lai, which promoted the benefits of eating invasive species. The article described dishes with Asian shore crab, lion fish, and other invasive species in mouth watering detail. People have been eating these unwanted pests since at least the 1980’s as a means of control. Why wouldn’t they? It’s food you don’t have to grow, and it’s stuff you don’t really want in your backyard. Invasive species cost the U.S. $120 billion every year in herbicides, pesticides, and the like.
Lionfish, an invasive species on the Florida coast since the 1980s
Despite the longevity, this was a new idea to me. As I searched online, I found a multitude of initiatives to eat invasive species and about as many articles discussing the negative impacts of these campaigns. Developing a market for invasive species can provide incentives to keep these species in the area and spread them to new areas. An invasive species, as in the case of the wild boar in Hawaii, can also become a cultural icon if it becomes ingrained in the regional cuisine. Additionally, invasive species have no natural predators and have high reproductive rates. Promoting the idea that eating invasive species is a solution can also lead people to believe that eating invasive species is all that is needed to take care of a species.
After reading these articles, I am still a fan of eating invasive species, but I think we need to be careful how we market them. “Eat ‘em to beat ‘em” is catchy (…and it rhymes), but most species cannot be contained by eating them alone. Instead of propagating the idea that we can eat an invasive species out of existence, we need to focus on the fact that every calorie we consume of an invasive species is a calorie that benefits our local ecosystem instead of harming it.
Sources:
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