“Barilla is putting cricket flour in its pasta”
Barilla says it has never announced insect products and has no intention of making them. Small makers in Thailand and France do sell insect pasta under their own names.
New proteins
Insect protein, lab-grown meat and animal-free dairy
By Rashad Bayram · Published · Last updated
What is actually sold, where, and the names it goes by on a label. A product is only listed with a source, and anything I couldn't confirm is marked.
It checks for the insect, lab-grown, animal-free and plant-based names below. Nothing you paste leaves your browser.
Insect ingredients
Whole-insect protein is still a niche, mostly sold online or in specialty stores. The insect ingredients you're most likely to meet in a mainstream store are two old ones: a red dye made from scale insects, and a candy glaze made from lac bug resin.
- On shelves
Carmine (cochineal)
Many brands
Red dye from crushed cochineal insects. Used in some yogurts, candy, juices, sausages and cosmetics.
Where: Mainstream stores, US, Canada, EU
- carmine
- cochineal
- cochineal extract
- carminic acid
- E120
- Natural Red 4
- crimson lake
The FDA has required it to be named on US food labels since 2011, instead of hiding under "color added".
- On shelves
Shellac (lac bug resin)
Many brands
Shiny coating made from a resin secreted by lac insects. Used on candy, chocolate-coated snacks, some pills and coated fruit.
Where: Mainstream stores, US, Canada, EU
- shellac
- confectioner's glaze
- pharmaceutical glaze
- resinous glaze
- lac resin
- E904
Usually appears near the end of the ingredient list on hard-shelled candy.
- Availability not confirmed
PC 100% Cricket Powder
Loblaw (President's Choice), made by Entomo Farms
Ground whole crickets sold as a protein powder.
Where: Loblaw stores in Canada (launched 2018)
- cricket powder
Launched in 2018. Whether it's still on shelves wasn't confirmed in this pass.
- On shelves
Entomo Farms cricket powder and roasted crickets
Entomo Farms, Norwood, Ontario
Cricket powder and whole roasted crickets.
Where: Online and specialty retailers; exports
- cricket powder
- whole roasted crickets
Still operating as of its September 2025 update.
- Availability not confirmed
Cricket pasta (Bugsolutely)
Bugsolutely, Thailand
Pasta made with cricket flour.
Where: Specialty and online
- cricket flour
- Acheta domesticus
Current North American availability not confirmed.
- Availability not confirmed
Insect pasta (Atelier à Pâtes)
Atelier à Pâtes, France
Pasta containing insect flour.
Where: France
- insect flour
Small French producer.
Lab-grown (cultivated) meat
Real animal cells grown in steel tanks. The US has cleared five products, but none sells at scale yet; launches have been small restaurant tastings. Canada and the EU have approved none.
- Approved, limited
UPSIDE Foods cultivated chicken
UPSIDE Foods
Chicken grown from animal cells.
Where: Limited restaurant tastings in the US
- cell-cultivated chicken
- cultivated
- cultured
Cleared by FDA and USDA.
Sources:[72] foodnavigator.com (opens in a new tab)[71] foodsafetynews.com (opens in a new tab)
- Approved, limited
GOOD Meat cultivated chicken
GOOD Meat (Eat Just)
Chicken grown from animal cells. Also the first product approved anywhere (Singapore, 2020).
Where: Limited tastings; Singapore
- cell-cultivated chicken
- cultivated
Cleared by FDA and USDA.
Sources:[72] foodnavigator.com (opens in a new tab)[71] foodsafetynews.com (opens in a new tab)
- Approved, limited
Wildtype cultivated salmon
Wildtype
Salmon grown from fish cells.
Where: Limited restaurant tastings in the US
- cultivated salmon
- cell-cultivated
Seafood is regulated by the FDA alone.
- Approved, limited
Mission Barns cultivated pork fat
Mission Barns
Pork fat grown from cells, blended into products such as meatballs and bacon.
Where: Limited US launch
- cultivated pork fat
- cell-cultivated
Usually blended with plant ingredients, so the package mixes both.
Sources:[72] foodnavigator.com (opens in a new tab)[73] cultivated-x.com (opens in a new tab)
- Discontinued
Believer Meats
Believer Meats
Cultivated chicken.
Where: Never sold
Cleared, then shut down in December 2025 before selling anything.
Animal-free dairy
Milk proteins such as whey (beta-lactoglobulin) made by microbes through precision fermentation. It's identical to cow protein, so labels must still warn about milk allergy.
- On shelves
Bored Cow
Tomorrow Farms, with Perfect Day protein
Milk made with animal-free whey protein.
Where: US stores including Target and Sprouts
- animal-free dairy protein
- animal-free whey
- contains milk
Tastes and behaves like milk; carries a milk allergen warning.
- Availability not confirmed
Strive Freemilk
Strive Nutrition, with Perfect Day protein
High-protein milk drink made with animal-free whey.
Where: US
- animal-free whey protein
- precision fermentation
Current distribution not confirmed.
- Approved, limited
Remilk beta-lactoglobulin
Remilk
Animal-free milk protein sold to food companies as an ingredient.
Where: Approved in Canada (2024); no Canadian consumer product confirmed
- beta-lactoglobulin
- non-animal milk protein
First animal-free milk protein cleared by Health Canada.
Plant-based meat and milk
Made from plants, not cells or microbes. Widely sold and clearly labelled, so it's included here for the ingredient names only.
- On shelves
Plant-based burgers and sausages
e.g. Beyond Meat, Impossible Foods, Lightlife, Gardein, Yves (Canada)
Meat substitutes made from pea, soy, wheat or other plant proteins.
Where: Mainstream stores, US and Canada
- plant-based
- meatless
- textured pea protein
- soy protein isolate
- soy leghemoglobin (Impossible's "heme")
- methylcellulose
Always labelled as plant-based; the ingredient list says what it's made from.
- On shelves
Plant-based milks
e.g. Oatly, Silk, Alpro, Earth's Own (Canada)
Drinks made from oats, soy, almonds, peas and other plants.
Where: Mainstream stores
- oat drink
- soy beverage
- plant-based beverage
In Canada and the EU these can't legally be called "milk".
Names to look for on labels
Insect protein
- cricket powder
- cricket flour
- Acheta domesticus
- house cricket
- mealworm
- Tenebrio molitor
- yellow mealworm
- lesser mealworm
- buffalo worm
- Alphitobius diaperinus
- migratory locust
- Locusta migratoria
- insect protein
- insect flour
Insect-derived colour and glaze
- carmine
- cochineal
- cochineal extract
- carminic acid
- E120
- Natural Red 4
- crimson lake
- shellac
- confectioner's glaze
- pharmaceutical glaze
- resinous glaze
- E904
Lab-grown meat
- cell-cultivated
- cultivated
- cultured meat
- cell-based
- lab-grown
- cultivated pork fat
- cultivated salmon
Animal-free dairy
- animal-free dairy protein
- animal-free whey
- non-animal whey protein
- beta-lactoglobulin
- precision fermentation
- made with fermentation
- contains milk (with no cows)
Plant-based
- plant-based
- meatless
- textured pea protein
- soy protein isolate
- soy leghemoglobin
- methylcellulose
- oat drink
- plant-based beverage
Where the rules stand
- EU
- Six insect foods authorised: house cricket, yellow mealworm (incl. UV-treated powder, 2025), lesser mealworm and migratory locust, frozen, dried or as powder. The species must be named on the label, with a warning for people allergic to crustaceans and dust mites.
Sources:[66] food.ec.europa.eu (opens in a new tab)[67] ansa.it (opens in a new tab)
- US
- Five cultivated meat and seafood products cleared since 2023. Carmine must be named on labels. Insects are regulated as ordinary food.
Sources:[71] foodsafetynews.com (opens in a new tab)[72] foodnavigator.com (opens in a new tab)[70] fda.gov (opens in a new tab)
- US states
- Lab-grown meat banned or paused in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Indiana (until 2027), Texas (until 2027) and South Dakota (moratorium from 1 Jul 2026). More than 20 states require clear labelling.
- Canada
- Cricket powder sold since 2018. One animal-free milk protein cleared (Remilk, 2024). No cultivated meat approved.
Sources:[68] storebrands.com (opens in a new tab)[74] dairyreporter.com (opens in a new tab)
- Singapore, Israel, Australia/NZ
- Have approved cultivated chicken, quail, duck or beef in some form. Nothing sells at scale anywhere yet.
Sources:[73] cultivated-x.com (opens in a new tab)[72] foodnavigator.com (opens in a new tab)
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