Bugs in Food: How a Crazy Idea Becomes an Awesome Reality

Megan Miller wants to know… why aren’t you eating bugs yet??

And for good reason - evidence suggests that protein sourced from insects just might be the key to fixing the world’s global food system.

Luckily for all of us, the bugs in question come in the form of delicious BittyFoods snacks, which include chocolate chip cookies and Chiridos, their signature tortilla-style chips.

Megan Miller is a digital strategist turned food pioneer, and the co-founder of BittyFoods, a company that makes a bevy of snacks made with their signature high-protein cricket flour.

The environmental science behind cricket farming is fascinating, but what we loved about our conversation with Megan was hearing how her vision and fearlessness empowered her to create something, well… a bit crazy.

Megan launched the company from her kitchen, baking and mashing crickets she purchased from a local pet store. Since then, she and Bitty have come a long way. The company has earned accolades and attention from national media, and recently secured national distribution for their products. (They also use much higher quality crickets these days.)

Megan was a delight to interview as she described how she and her co-founder have staked a claim at the intersection of deliciousness and craziness. We think you’ll really like this one.

Key Takeaways

• Megan tells us how she got into the whole cricket business in the first place. 4:35
• Megan describes the taste of cricket flour for people who haven’t had it before, and explains how they sourced the original insects. 8:35
• Megan breaks down the environmental advantage of cricket protein versus other types of protein. 10:15
• Megan describes how regions of the world that eat insects helped inspire the flavors of some of their signature products. 15:02
• Megan talks about the genesis of the name Bitty and considers the possibility of expanding to other insects. 16:05
• Megan describes her real apprehension about becoming the “crazy cricket lady.” 17:00
• Megan explains the process of sustainably raising crickets, and the possibility of certification for cricket farming in the near future. 19:43
• Megan goes back to her Childhood and tells us an experience that shaped her personality and helped her developed her grit and resolve. 21:15
• Megan talks about bootstrapping the company in its earliest days. 23:58
• Megan describes the greatest challenges the business has seen, and how they overcame it. 25:55
• Megan explains how she keeps her sanity while running a fast-growing business in such an unusual niche. 31:55

Links

• BittyFoods.com
• Megan on LinkedIn
• Justin’s Nut Butters

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