Ito Fernando, Bara Yudhistira, Krishnamanikumar Premachandran, Shubhra Singh, Faiz Nashiruddin Muhammad, Natalya Pavlovna Oboturova, Andrey Ashotovich Nagdalian, M. Bayu Mario, Luqman Qurata Aini, Widya Satya Nugraha
The consumption of insects by humans has been around since the dawn of mankind, with many people around the world incorporating edible insects into their diets today. This practice is increasingly recognized as a potential solution to food insecurity issues. It is worth noting that ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) occupy a significant position within entomophagy since they are one of the most noticeable and plentiful groups of insects in forests, agricultural ecosystems, and urban habitats. As much as 59 species of ants are recognized as edible and are consumed during their egg, larva, pupa, or adult stage. However, available scientific information shows that their consumption must be accompanied by standardized and sustainable production. In this review, the use of ants as food will be discussed, with special reference to different ant species, the regional and country-specific meanings, differences in entomophagy related to ants, the bioecology, nutritional characteristics, and pharmaceutical benefits, and the rearing and processing processes. Additionally, consumer acceptance towards the consumption of edible ants will be overviewed. This review aims to provide a foundation for further research on the use of ants as food, while serving as a valuable source of information in response to growing interest in this field. © 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Department of Plant Pest and Diseases, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Brawijaya, East Java, Malang, Indonesia; Department of Food Science and Technology, Sebelas Maret University, Surakarta, Indonesia; Centre for Climate Change Studies, International Research Centre, Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Tamil Nadu, Chennai, India; Department of Tropical Agriculture and international Cooperation, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung, Taiwan; Species Obscura, Jawa Barat, Depok, Indonesia; North Caucasus Federal University, Stavropol, Russian Federation; Department of Plant Pests and Diseases, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Hasanuddin, Makassar, Indonesia; Department of Agricultural Socio-Economics, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, Indonesia; Doctoral School of Food Science, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
