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What we do

Our services

With a domestic supply chain finding its feet and the regulatory landscape still evolving, companies in the UK edible insect space face some uncertainty. That’s why we’re doing the hard graft, bringing experts, businesses, researchers, authors and entrepreneurs from across the UK together as UKEIA members.

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Join us in our edible insect revolution!

We tailor our services across a range of members’ needs, whether you're an experienced agriculturalist or looking at starting out in insect farming, at an R&D stage with your product, studying at an Undergraduate or Postgraduate level or working within policy - we can help you.

Image by Federico Respini

Network

​Access to our network of members - product developers, farmers, retailers, and researchers in the edible insect industry for peer support and supply chain partners.

Keep informed

​Being informed about key developments and opportunities in research, innovation, and policy within the sector in the UK and overseas.

Reduced costs

​Reduced costs of activities such as Novel Food dossier submissions through a combination of collective purchasing and access to discounts.

Research

Access to sector-focused research and good practice resources including reports on effective practice, trends, and guidance on professional and safe insect farming and manufacture.

Sector promotion

The promotion of edible insects as a food and ingredient with UK consumers in order to mainstream these in the public’s minds and amongst the retail community. 

Resources

Access to a wealth of industry-specific, localised resources including articles, whitepapers and reports.

View our services in more detail

UKEIA is a growing organisation whose capacity will grow as its membership and the wider sector grow.

  • Towards effective management of health and welfare of farmed insects
    As the farmed insect protein becomes a recognised professional industry it will need codes of practice, vet support, lists of notifiable diseases, and more. How can these be developed? This workshop, led by two experts in the field, will share observations about what is needed as they lead a research-supported discussion towards a roadmap for action. Ben Kennedy (invertebrate vet) and Mandy Lucas (Animal Welfare Consulting)
  • The National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre (NAPIC)
    NAPIC will launch a raft of funding opportunities in 2025, designed to support research and innovation to drive growth in the alternative protein sectors in the UK. What specific opportunities will there be and how can the farmed insect protein sector take advantage, working through UKEIA? Gesa Reiss (Leeds university)
  • The retailer's perspective and supply chain issues
    Sacoma Healthfoods work with a number of suppliers of products containing insects. Perez is working on wider opportunities to connect the global supply chain including logistics and overseas suppliers. She’ll share her observations on the challenges and lead a discussion of how these could be overcome through collaboration. Perez Ochieng (Sacoma)
  • Setting up a BSF farm
    Flybox can help turn organic waste into profit with Black Soldier Fly larvae. Larry will describe the benefits of this approach and the sources of support that exist to develop a profitable new venture for those in the food supply chain, including alongside traditional agricultural practices. Larry Kotch (Flybox)
  • Cost effective intellectual property management for farmed insect protein businesses
    Many businesses rely on their intellectual property for their success. This can include designs, patents, data from their experiences and research and trade secrets. Do you understand your IP and are you clear how you can manage, exploit and protect it in a competitive marketplace? This workshop will look at these issues and how to approach them with a clear appreciation of the financial constraints all businesses face. Greg Stepney (Withers & Rogers)
  • Working through permit requirements for an insect farm
    Setting up an insect farm includes a great deal of bureaucracy and the development of an effective working relationship with your local authority officers. Understanding this will really help new insect farming businesses get operational and turning a profit more quickly. Julian will share his own journey and lessons learned so they can be harnessed by others. Julian Knight (Fairman Knight and Sons)
  • Black Soldier Fly Larvae (BSFL) as a sustainable animal feed?
    Insect protein has been promoted as a potential sustainable protein source that can be used to reduce the environmental impacts of animal feed, but given the recent attention and legislation on greenwashing it is crucial that any claims are robustly evidenced and grounded in scientific evidence. This presentation - feeding back on research conducted for DEFRA - will explore how insect protein in the context of black soldier fly larvae-based insect meal compares to more conventional pig and poultry feeds. Emily Dawson (Ricardo)
  • Compliance and safety management in food product development
    When developing a new food product range, or even a pet food there are many risks, associated regulations and compliance requirements which need to be considered. John will provide an overview of these and help attendees ways to navigate through any potential pitfalls. John Points

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