Teaching about edible insects: design and insights from the summer school “Insects as food: From farm to fork”

Abstract Summer schools for university students represent a strategic educational format that facilitates intensive, short-term learning on specific topics. This approach was exemplified during the summer school “Insects as Food: From Farm to Fork,” coordinated by the Czech University of Life Sciences, Czechia, in collaboration with four partner universities from Italy, Germany, Poland, and the Netherlands. The summer school program aimed to deliver comprehensive, interdisciplinary education on the insect food chain by integrating theoretical knowledge with practical experience. The main activities of the summer school included a virtual part (lectures) and in-person activities (lectures, student group project, and excursions). The syllabus was designed to cover the predominant aspects of the insect food chain, from insect physiology and insect production to food product development, safety standards, and legislative considerations. For group projects, students conducted sensory evaluations of cookies formulated with various inclusion rates of insect flour from four insect species. Based on their findings, each group designed a unique concept for a novel insect-based food product and presented it at the end of the summer school, followed by a guided discussion. Post-course student self-evaluations provided insights into the students’ perception of different educational activities and indicated that summer school activities were effective in increasing their knowledge about edible insects. The results suggest that such an educational event could also contribute to broader knowledge dissemination and increase the acceptance of edible insects as a food source.