Bugging Out: Anne Carlson of Jiminy’s + Chef Bun Lai

Do you have environmental food guilt? There’s no actual definition for that (because we just made it up), but many of us definitely know how it feels: that regretful pang we get, knowing that much of the food we either eat or feed our pets is doing harm to the environment. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to two people cultivating alternative food sources in order to help the planet. First, the founder and CEO of Jiminy’s, Anne Carlson, discusses how their company makes insect protein-based pet food. Then, we speak to acclaimed chef and sustainable food pioneer Bun Lai to learn about his vision for making both Mother Earth and her human inhabitants healthier by incorporating insects and invasive species into dining experiences. 00:01 Narrator – This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I’m Alex Wise. 00:23 Bun Lai – Why not eat animals and plants that are abundant but underutilized and aim our destructive appetites at them rather than other species that were overfishing, for example. 00:38 Alex Wise – Do you have environmental food guilt? There’s no actual definition for that (because we just made it up), but many of us definitely know how it feels: that regretful pang we get, knowing that much of the food we either eat or feed our pets is doing harm to the environment. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to two people cultivating alternative food sources in order to help the planet. First, the founder and CEO of Jiminy’s, Anne Carlson, discusses how their company makes insect protein-based pet food. Then, we speak to acclaimed chef and sustainable food pioneer Bun Lai to learn about his vision for making both Mother Earth and her human inhabitants healthier by incorporating insects and invasive species into dining experiences. 01:48 Alex Wise – I’m joined now on Sea Change Radio by the founder and CEO of Jiminy’s and Carlson and welcome to Sea Change Radio. 01:56 Anne Carlson – Thank you for having me here. 01:57 Alex Wise – So explain for our listeners what Jiminy’s offers consumers and the problem you’re trying to address. 02:05 Anne Carlson – Jiminy’s is disrupting the pet industry. We’re fighting climate change as we feed our pets. And how are we doing that? We’re replacing traditional protein, so think cow or chicken with insect and plant protein, and so we’re delivering sustainable dog food that’s coupled with better nutrition. No compromises. 02:28 Alex Wise – And explain the process of sourcing insects. Where do you get your grubs and your crickets? How does that work? 02:37 Anne Carlson – Yeah, well they come from farms, so these are all farmed indoors and the great thing about farming insects is that it takes so much less land than any other type of protein source, and they’re naturally swarming species, so they like to live together so it’s extremely humane as well, and actually let me just give you an exampl