"Pet" Factories
The most numerous animals in the world are often the ones who matter the least.
Many evoke rejection. Discomfort. Even disgust.
They are small and feel distant to us.
But that emotional distance perhaps it says more about our own limits than about them.
We are talking about insects, animals that have been exploited by human beings for centuries. The most well-known examples are bees, silkworms, or cochineals used as dyes in various products.(1)
Perhaps it is not as well known that some of these small animals, such as certain types of flies and beetle larvae, are also bred to become food for fishes, birds, and, increasingly, animals considered companions.
But something is changing. Insect farms are expanding rapidly. For several years now, many countries have been working to promote the consumption of insects as a sustainable alternative for human food on a global scale.(2) To this end, they are being included as an ingredient in processed products such as flours, protein bars, or snacks.
Although today the use of insect-derived ingredients in food for human consumption in Europe or North America remains a minority, it is growing rapidly at an industrial level.
According to various market reports, the insect protein industry could grow from around 0.7–0.8 billion dollars in 2025 to more than 3–4 billion by 2035. On the other hand, some estimates place the global edible insect market at much higher figures, rising from 6 billion dollars in 2026 to more than 40 billion by 2035.
This growth is no accident. Since the mid-2010s, the European Union, the United States, and Canada have actively promoted the insect farming industry.
On the other hand, and in addition to this, research continues to expand the use of insects in other areas. An example is the use of black soldier fly larvae to manage livestock waste such as manure, with the promise of reducing emissions and eliminating antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Far from decreasing the exploitation and slaughter of the animals currently used in livestock farming, this would mean an exponential increase in the victims of this industry. We are talking about astronomical figures if we add the hundreds of billions of insects to the rest of the animals traditionally exploited for direct human consumption.
We would be facing an unprecedented scale of animal exploitation.
Inside insect farms
Currently, the insects raised and slaughtered annually by the industry number in the trillions.
If we take the world production of shellac as a reference, a product obtained from the insect Kerria lacca, it is estimated that between 1 and 100 trillion of these animals die every year.
To obtain refined shellac, the resin is crushed with the insects inside it and subsequently cooked inside canvas tubes.
The product obtained from these animals is used for different purposes: as a glazing agent to shine candies and various foods, in the pharmaceutical industry as a coating for tablets, or as a dye and varnish, among others.
Between 18 and 41 trillion honeybees are exploited to obtain honey and derived products.
During harvesting, handling can cause the death of the bees, either by crushing or through stress.
On certain occasions, bees also die of exhaustion and heat while searching for nectar to replenish the honey that beekeepers extract from the hives, which constitutes their food reserve.
It is a common practice for some beekeepers to kill entire colonies before winter to reduce costs, as it can be cheaper to buy new bees in the spring than to feed them during the winter.
In recent years, the farming of black soldier flies has become a rapidly expanding global industry. According to industry estimates, more than 200 billion larvae are bred annually worldwide to be used, primarily, as food for animals destined for human consumption.
The Tenebrio molitor, or mealworm, is one of the insects most widely used by the industry. Although official figures do not exist, estimates suggest that around 300 billion of these animals are killed every year.
In 2021, the European Food Safety Authority concluded that the mealworm is safe for human consumption. It thus became the first insect authorized as a novel food in the European Union.
In general on farms, the lives of the animals are shaped by production demands: mass handling and high concentration in confined spaces. Under these conditions, many do not survive, dying from drowning, cannibalism, or diseases.
In the slaughter process, various methods are used, such as slow freezing, shredding, exposure to high temperatures (via hot water, steam, or thermal drying), or gases such as carbon dioxide.(3)
We must take into account that if land mammals and birds—regarding whose capacity to feel there is not the slightest doubt—are subjected to multiple forms of suffering on farms with complete impunity, the level of disregard there can be for the interests of insects is infinitely greater.
Ethical dilemma: can insects feel?
Despite possessing small brains, numerous studies demonstrate that insects exhibit complex behaviors.(4) Bees, for example, show learning capacities, communication, and flexible responses to different stimuli.(5)
Current research suggests that what matters in determining whether an animal is sentient is not the number of neurons they possess, but rather their functional organization.(6)For sentience to occur, the nervous system must include information-processing organs, such as the brain or nerve ganglia, and all insects possess these.(7)Numerous studies have shown that they have nociception mechanisms that allow them to respond to harmful stimuli.(8)
To date, there are not enough studies analyzing the various species of insects. However, there are some that are well-studied and for which the scientific community has no doubt that they are sentient. As has been done with other animal species, given the similarities between bees, for example, and other less-studied insects, we should extend the consideration of being sentient to those other species.(9).
Because if they truly can feel, as the evidence we have seems to indicate, we may be facing one of the most severe cases of mass suffering, which runs the risk of expanding even further in the coming years.
A debate we still have time to hold
Industrial insect farming has moved from being an experimental practice to consolidating itself as a strategic sector within global food systems. Its farms are expanding rapidly, both for the production of animal feed and for the development of products intended for human consumption. However, while this industry advances, the ethical debate regarding its implications is only just beginning.
It is worth remembering that we do not need to resort to new forms of animal exploitation to meet our nutritional needs. Plant-based protein diets are endorsed by various international bodies, such as the World Health Organization, the British Dietetic Association, the UK National Health Service, Dietitians of Canada, or the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics in the United States.
Perhaps for the vast majority of human beings, worrying about insects does not seem so relevant. It is more than likely that people believe there are more urgent or important problems, and that there are animals who deserve more attention at the present time.
The point is that if we want a more just world, perhaps we should also think about what the situation will be like in the future.
On the one hand, insect farming can "extend the lifespan" of the current exploitation of animals such as cows, pigs, or fish if their waste can be managed efficiently through insects.
On the other hand, for those who center their argument on the environmental effects of the animals currently most used by the industry, we leave the door open for insects to take their place if their farming is sustainable and efficient.
And most importantly, if we care about animal suffering, we cannot forget that the more studies are conducted on the sentience of insects, the more the results indicate that they can, indeed, feel.
The large-scale exploitation of insects is moving toward consolidation, and an untold number of individuals will pay the consequences. We are facing a form of exploitation that would bring animal suffering and death to an unprecedented scale.
Without a prior debate, and once it has been normalized, it will be practically impossible to decide upon it.
Notes
[1] https://www.invertebratewelfare.org/
[2] Reynolds, M. (2023) “Insect Farming Is Booming. But Is It Cruel?”, Wired, https://www.wired.com/story/insect-farming-sentience/
[3] https://rethinkpriorities.org/research-area/insects-raised-for-food-and-feed/
[4] Birch. Invertebrate sentience-A review of the neuroscientific literature. sección “Number of neurons in the brain”.
[5] Ibíd. discussion by Chittka and Niven and comparison between bees and other animals (see reference in “A review of the neuroscientific….”)
[6] Ibíd. Klein y Barron. Argumentos sobre organización funcional frente a cantidad de neuronas.
[7] https://www.animal-ethics.org/the-problem-of-consciousness/
[8] Birch. The edge of sentience.
[9] Birch. Invertebrate sentience-A review of the neuroscientific literature.
This audiovisual was recorded in India, Spain and Chile.
Work by Animals' View
Direction and cinematography by Xiana Castro
Music by Extreme Music
Sound design Álvaro Iglesias
With the collaboration of Aditya SK , Nayan Agarwal, Renata Valdivia, Eira Do Val, Rithika Ramesh, Aisha Montiel, Aula Animal, Animal Save India and Generation Vegan.
Texts by Animals' View editorial team and photos by Eira Do Val.
Design and photography of poster Ruth Montiel Arias.
Publicado en mayo del 2026