How many bugs does the average person eat without knowing?

December 21, 2025 •

4 min read

According to estimates cited in Scientific American and other reports, the average American can consume up to two pounds of dead insects and insect fragments each year. The unsettling reality is that most people unknowingly eat bugs as a normal part of their diet, primarily through packaged and processed foods.

Quick Summary

The average person inadvertently consumes insect fragments in everyday processed foods like flour, canned tomatoes, and frozen vegetables. The U.S. FDA permits certain levels of insect contaminants in food products, making some incidental ingestion unavoidable. This consumption is a byproduct of mass food production, not a health risk.

Key Points

Significant Annual Consumption: The average person unknowingly consumes approximately one to two pounds of insects or their fragments per year, mainly through packaged foods.
FDA Approval: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sets permissible levels of insect contaminants in processed foods, which are deemed safe for consumption.
Digestive System Handles It: The human body's digestive acids efficiently break down and process insect protein, rendering incidental consumption harmless for most people.
Agricultural Inevitability: Bugs enter the food supply during the harvesting, processing, and storage stages of agricultural products, from grains to canned vegetables.
Allergy Risk is Minimal: While a rare possibility, especially for those with shellfish allergies, the health risks from incidental insect consumption are very low.
It's a Natural Process: Unintentional entomophagy is a result of natural agricultural processes and mass food production, not a failure of food safety protocols.

The Surprising Truth Behind Unintentional Entomophagy

The idea of consuming insects, a practice known as entomophagy, is unsettling to many in Western cultures. However, the truth is that it's a regular, if unacknowledged, part of our diet. The exact number of bugs the average person eats without knowing is hard to pinpoint, but estimates regularly cite figures between one and two pounds annually. This isn't due to poor hygiene but is an inevitable part of large-scale agriculture and food processing. From harvesting crops to manufacturing finished products, it's virtually impossible to completely prevent insects and their fragments from entering the food supply chain.

How Bugs End Up in Your Food

For many, the idea of eating bugs is a conscious culinary choice, but unintentional consumption is a completely different story. Insects and their parts find their way into our meals through a variety of commonplace routes:

During Harvesting: Crops like wheat, hops, and vegetables are grown outdoors, making them a natural habitat for insects. As they are harvested, some bugs are inevitably collected along with the plants.
Processing and Storage: Grains, spices, and dried fruits are stored in large quantities in warehouses. Pests like mites and beetles can infest these supplies, and while regulations limit their presence, they cannot be eliminated entirely.
Manufacturing: During processing, foods are mashed, ground, and mixed, breaking insects into fragments that become undetectable to the naked eye. This is how many fragments end up in items like peanut butter, pasta, and baked goods.
Packaging: Some insects, such as fruit flies, can get trapped in packaging during the final stages of production or while products are on store shelves.

The Role of the FDA: Food Defect Levels Handbook

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) doesn't pretend that our food is entirely bug-free. Instead, it has established guidelines known as the Food Defect Levels Handbook. These are not safety standards but rather maximum allowable levels of natural or unavoidable defects, including insect fragments, that pose no health hazard. The limits exist because it is economically impractical to produce most foods without any trace of natural contamination. For example, the FDA's rules permit specific quantities of insect fragments in foods like chocolate, peanut butter, and fruit juice. The reasoning is that the minimal levels allowed are harmless and don't affect the aesthetic or quality of the product.

Common Foods with Unknowingly Eaten Insects

It might be surprising to learn which of your favorite foods contain insect fragments. A look at the FDA's guidelines reveals many culprits:


Food Product	FDA Allowable Defect Level (Excerpts)	Example Insect Fragments
Frozen Broccoli	Average of 60 or more aphids, thrips, and/or mites per 100 grams.	Aphids, mites, larvae
Canned Tomatoes	Average of 10 fly eggs or 1 maggot per 500 grams.	Maggots, fly eggs
Chocolate	Average of 60 or more insect fragments per 100 grams.	Cockroach fragments, insect parts
Peanut Butter	Average of 30 or more insect fragments per 100 grams.	Aphids, mites, insect parts
Hops (used in beer)	Average of 2,500 or more aphids per 10 grams.	Aphids
Fig Paste	Average of 13 insect heads per 100 grams.	Insect heads

This table provides examples based on FDA guidelines to illustrate the presence of insect fragments and should not be considered a comprehensive list.

The Impact on Your Health

Eating an incidental bug or insect fragment is overwhelmingly harmless for most people. The human digestive system is highly acidic and perfectly capable of breaking down insect protein, much like any other protein. In fact, insects are a nutritious source of protein, fat, and minerals, which is why they are deliberately consumed in many cultures. The bugs are typically so small or processed into fragments that the body doesn't even notice them. In rare cases, individuals with specific allergies to shellfish might have a cross-reactive allergic reaction to certain insect proteins. However, for the vast majority, the incidental consumption of a few bugs each year is simply a fact of modern food production and not a health concern.

Conclusion

So, how many bugs does the average person eat without knowing? The answer is likely far more than most people would be comfortable admitting, with estimates pointing to a pound or more annually. The real takeaway isn't that our food is unsafe, but rather that our food systems are naturally imperfect and that bugs are an inescapable part of the agricultural ecosystem. The FDA's regulations are in place to ensure these levels remain at a non-hazardous, aesthetic minimum. Ultimately, this common reality is a reminder that what we don't know won't hurt us, especially in the pursuit of affordable, mass-produced food.

Visit the FDA website for more information on the Food Defect Levels Handbook.

Frequently Asked Questions

No, for the vast majority of people, consuming insect fragments in processed foods is not dangerous. The levels are regulated by the FDA and are well within the range the human digestive system can handle without issue.

The FDA acknowledges that it is impossible to eliminate all food defects, including insects, from mass-produced food. Its Food Defect Levels Handbook sets maximum limits for various contaminants that are not considered health hazards, ensuring products are aesthetically acceptable.

No, you typically cannot taste or feel the insect fragments. They are usually so small and ground up during processing that they are undetectable by our senses.

Some common foods likely to contain insect parts include chocolate, peanut butter, canned tomatoes, frozen vegetables like broccoli and spinach, and flour. This is due to the nature of their production and storage.

No, they are generally not a sign of poor hygiene. The presence of insects is an unavoidable part of agriculture and processing, and the FDA's allowances account for this natural reality.

In very rare cases, individuals with severe shellfish allergies may experience a cross-reactive allergic reaction to insect proteins. If you experience symptoms like swelling or difficulty breathing, seek immediate medical attention.

No, eating organic food does not prevent you from consuming bugs. Since organic farming avoids certain pesticides, it may sometimes have higher levels of incidental insect presence. It's a natural and harmless part of the process.