Chemical composition of Aspongopus nepalensis Westwood 1837 (Hemiptera; Pentatomidae), a common food insect of tribal people in Arunachal Pradesh (India)

Abstract

We identified nutritionally relevant fatty acids and macro- and micronutrient content in Aspongopus nepalensis Westwood 1837 (Hemiptera), an insect used as food by the ethnic people of Arunachal Pradesh (North East India). Regarding macronutrients, crude lipids made up 38.35 %, fibre 33.47 %, protein 10.6 %, moisture 41.9 %, and ash 2.1 %. Lipid amounts were higher than those of most other insects. A. nepalensis was rich in Na: 1.02 %, K: 0.35 %, Ca: 0.12 %, Mg: 0.16 % and moreover, contained considerable amounts of Fe, Cu, Zn, and Mn. With regard to vitamins, A was most abundant (34.38 µg/100 g); C, D, E, and those of the B-complex were present, but less abundant, and monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA) content was high (56.1 % of the total fat). Oleic and palmitic acids (46.41 % and 32.32 % of total fat) were the two major fatty acids in this insect's oil. The latter also contained moderate amounts of stearic, palmitoleic, linoleic, myristic, eicosenoic, and linolenic acids.