A beetle can lift more than 900 times its weight. And you thought you were strong? Will genetically-modified beetles one day build skyscrapers for humans? Will breakfast cereal be made out of insect protein and lunch comprise synthetic beef or meat pie made out of grasshopper tissue? We are now in the realm of science fiction. Brossard does not say so. But he believes that insects may be a major source of food for the future.

He may be right. In fact, eating insects is not alien to humans. In some parts of the world insects are considered a delicacy. During drought, people in Rajasthan eat grasshoppers. Locust chutney and pickle are said to be particularly delicious. Similar food habits are common in many states of the Northeast.

Brossard has even promoted eating of insects in a more prosperous part of the world. He recently organised an insect food festival in Montreal where insects were served with chocolate, garlic or even lollipops. People paid Canadian $5 (us $3.35) for a meal of 60 insects. The festival was a major hit.

With the world population touching six billion, the issue of food security has become one of the most important one to humankind. "The food situation in India is going to become very severe given the fact that India's population is set to touch the five billion mark by the year 2078,' he says. In view of a population explosion and a lack of resources, we might as well accept the importance of insects and learn to live with them.