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A Complete Guide to Schema Markup for Higher Educational Websites

A Step-by-step Guide

In the vast digital landscape, educational institutions must stand out to attract the right audience. One of the most effective ways to enhance online visibility is through schema markup. If you’re a higher education marketing professional or decision maker, this guide will help you understand and implement schema markup to improve your website’s SEO.

Understanding Schema Markup Basics

Brief History of Schema.org

Founded in 2011 by major search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, and Yandex, Schema.org aims to create a structured data vocabulary that improves search engine understanding of web content. This collaboration has significantly enhanced how search engines interpret and display information.

Relationship Between Search Engines and Schema Markup

Schema markup helps search engines understand the context and relevance of your website’s content. This, in turn, leads to more accurate and rich search results, increasing your visibility and click-through rates (CTR).

Overview of Microdata, RDFa, and JSON-LD

  • Microdata and RDFa (Resource Description Framework in Attributes) embed metadata within HTML content.
  • JSON-LD (JavaScript Object Notation for Linked Data) is a popular format for its simplicity and compatibility with JavaScript.

The Importance of Schema Markup for Educational Institutions

Enhancing Search Engine Results Through Rich Snippets

Rich snippets display additional information like star ratings, event dates, and course details directly in search results, making your listings more attractive and informative.

Increasing Click-Through Rates

With rich snippets, your search result stands out, leading to higher CTR and more engagement.

Improving Local SEO and Event Visibility

Schema markup can also optimize your local SEO, making it easier for prospective students and parents to find you.

Establishing Authority and Trustworthiness

Providing detailed, structured data enhances your institution’s authority and credibility in the eyes of search engines and users alike.

Common Schema Types for Educational Websites

Schools & Colleges

Educational Organization: General schema for educational institutions.

CollegeOrUniversity and School (ElementarySchool, MiddleSchool, HighSchool): Specific schemas for different education levels.

Courses

Course Schema Type: Provides detailed information about individual courses.

Events

EducationEvent: Highlights educational events like workshops, seminars, and lectures.

People

Person Schema: Useful for faculty and alumni profiles, showcasing their achievements and qualifications.

Step-by-step Implementation Guide

Choosing the Right Schema Type

Identify the schema types that best represent your content, such as `EducationalOrganization` for your institution or `Course` for individual courses.

Implementing Using JSON-LD

JSON-LD is the recommended format for implementing schema markup as it is easy to read and flexible.

Placement of Schema Code

Place the JSON-LD code in the `<head>` section of your HTML document or use a tag manager.

Testing and Validation

Use tools like Google’s Rich Results Test and Schema.org’s Validator to ensure your markup is correctly implemented.

Integrating Schema Markup with Your Content Strategy

Crafting Content with Schema in Mind

Create content that aligns with your schema markup to ensure consistency and relevance.

Aligning Technical SEO and Content Creation

Work closely with your technical team to seamlessly integrate schema markup into your overall content strategy.

Advanced Schema Implementation Strategies

Dynamic Schema Markup for Frequently Updated Content

For content that changes frequently, such as event listings, use dynamic schema markup to keep your data current.

Leveraging Schema for Improved Analytics and Insight

Schema markup can enhance your analytics by providing more detailed insights into user behavior and search performance.

Continual Optimization and Monitoring

Regularly update and refine your schema markup based on the latest guidelines and search engine updates.

Advanced Tips for Optimizing Schema Markup

Harnessing the Power of Nested Schema Markup

Use nested schema to provide more context and detail, enhancing the richness of your data.

Semantic Relationships and Linked Data

Leverage semantic relationships and linked data to create a more interconnected and informative web presence.

Schema Markup for Multimedia Content

Optimize video and image content with relevant schema markup to boost visibility and engagement.

Personalization Through Schema Markup

Use schema to personalize content and improve user experience by tailoring information to individual preferences.

Collaborative Schema Development and Sharing

Building a Community of Practice

Collaborate with other educational institutions to share best practices and innovations in schema markup.

Contributing to Schema.org

Participate in the Schema.org community to stay updated and contribute to the development of new schemas.

Potential Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

Ensuring Authenticity in Your Schema Markup

Accurate and honest schema markup is crucial to maintaining trust and avoiding penalties from search engines.

Balancing Detail with Clarity

Provide enough detail to be informative without overwhelming users or search engines.

Adapting to Search Engine Algorithm Changes

Stay informed about algorithm updates and adjust your schema markup accordingly.

Addressing Schema Markup Implementation Errors

Regularly audit your markup to identify and correct any errors.

Tools to Assist with Schema Markup Implementation

Here are some tools that will help you with your schema goals:

  • Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper is a tool that assists webmasters in adding structured data markup to their websites, making it easier for search engines to understand and display the content.
  • Google’s Rich Results Test is a tool that evaluates your website’s structured data to determine if it qualifies for rich results in Google’s search engine, helping to enhance your site’s visibility and user engagement.
  • Schema.org’s Official Documentation is a comprehensive resource that provides guidelines, examples, and detailed information on using structured data markup to improve search engine understanding and visibility of web content.
  • Merkle’s Schema Markup Generator is a tool that helps users create and customize structured data markup for their websites, enhancing SEO and search engine visibility.
  • Bing’s Markup Validator is a tool that checks the structured data markup on your website to ensure it adheres to Bing’s guidelines and standards, helping to improve your site’s search engine optimization.

Schema Markup and The Future of SEO for Educational Websites

Embracing the Semantic Web

Adopt semantic technologies to create a more connected and meaningful web experience.

Crafting a Richer Web of Information

Utilize advanced schema techniques to enrich the information available on your website.

Pioneering with New Schema Types

Stay ahead of the curve by experimenting with new and emerging schema types.

Leveraging Schema Markup for Emerging Technologies

Integrate schema with cutting-edge technologies like AI and machine learning for enhanced functionality.

Preparing for Voice Search Dominance

Optimize your schema markup for voice search to stay relevant in the evolving search landscape.

Integrating with AI and Machine Learning

Use AI to automate and improve your schema markup processes.

Fostering an Ecosystem of Shared Learning

Encourage collaboration and knowledge sharing within the educational community.

Using AI in Your Schema Markup Strategy

Artificial Intelligence (AI) can significantly streamline the process of writing schema markup code for website managers, making it more efficient and less prone to errors. Here’s how AI can assist in this task:

1. Automated Schema Generation

AI tools can automatically generate schema markup based on the content of a webpage. By analyzing the text, images, and other elements on the page, AI can determine the most appropriate schema types (e.g., Article, Product, Event) and generate the corresponding JSON-LD or Microdata code.

2. Content Analysis and Classification

AI can analyze the structure and content of a webpage to classify different types of information (e.g., names, dates, locations). This helps in identifying which schema properties should be used and ensures that all relevant information is marked up accurately.

3. Natural Language Processing (NLP)

Using NLP, AI can understand and extract key information from the text. For example, it can identify an event’s date, location, and organizer from a description and use this data to create a complete Event schema markup.

4. Integration with Content Management Systems (CMS)

AI-powered plugins or extensions can be integrated with popular CMS platforms like WordPress, Joomla, or Drupal. These tools can provide real-time suggestions and automatically insert schema markup as the website manager creates or edits content.

5. Schema Markup Suggestions

AI tools can offer schema markup suggestions based on best practices and the latest SEO trends. This ensures that the website uses the most effective and up-to-date schema types and properties, enhancing search engine visibility and user engagement.

6. Error Detection and Correction

AI can detect errors or missing fields in existing schema markup and provide recommendations for corrections. This helps maintain the accuracy and completeness of the structured data, ensuring better performance in search engine results.

7. Continuous Learning and Adaptation

AI systems can continuously learn from changes in search engine algorithms and user behavior. They can adapt their schema generation strategies to align with the latest SEO guidelines and improve the website’s search engine ranking over time.

Example Workflow

Here’s an example workflow you may want to consider:

  1. Content Input: The website manager inputs the content (e.g., a new blog post, product page).
  2. AI Analysis: The AI analyzes the content to understand its structure and extract relevant information.
  3. Schema Generation: Based on the analysis, the AI generates the appropriate schema markup code.
  4. Review and Edit: The website manager reviews the generated code and makes any necessary adjustments.
  5. Implementation: The AI tool automatically inserts the schema markup into the webpage’s HTML.

Tools and Platforms

AI can greatly simplify the process of creating and managing schema markup, making it accessible even to those with limited technical expertise. By automating schema generation, providing intelligent suggestions, and ensuring compliance with SEO best practices, AI empowers website managers to enhance their site’s visibility and user experience efficiently.

In Conclusion

In the digital age, where information overload is common, standing out is both an art and a science. For educational websites, schema markup has become a necessity. As institutions aim to connect with potential students, faculty, or donors, this structured data acts as a beacon, guiding users to the most relevant and impactful content.

However, it’s important to use schema markup judiciously and in conjunction with other SEO strategies. The ultimate goal is to provide value, foster trust, and create an enriching digital experience for all users.

Whether you’re an established educational institution or a budding e-learning platform, the digital realm offers limitless potential. Let schema markup be your compass, guiding you toward enhanced visibility, engagement, and success.

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Crafting a Comprehensive AI-Driven Content Strategy for Higher Education Marketing

Crafting a Comprehensive AI-Driven Content Strategy for Higher Education Marketing

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the landscape of higher education marketing, providing tools that streamline the creation and distribution of content. To harness these tools effectively, it’s crucial to understand their potential and how to implement them strategically.

Understanding AI-Generated Content

AI-generated content refers to materials produced by AI algorithms, such as written articles, marketing copy, and visuals. These algorithms can analyze data patterns and generate content with minimal human intervention, enhancing efficiency and consistency in content creation.

In the context of higher education, AI-generated content includes automated marketing materials, course descriptions, personalized student communications, and engagement tools. Universities and colleges use these strategies to create a lasting impression on prospective students.

Key Benefits of AI in Higher Education Marketing

Incorporating AI into higher education marketing strategies presents a myriad of benefits, fundamentally reshaping how institutions engage with their target audience. These advantages include the ability to tailor communication for more effective engagement, analyze data to refine marketing strategies, ensure content resonates with diverse demographics, and provide automated assistance through intelligent chatbots. Let’s explore these key benefits in detail:

AI’s integration into higher education marketing offers several advantages:

  • Personalized Communication: AI tailors messages to engage prospective students effectively.
  • Data Analysis: AI analyzes trends and behaviors to optimize marketing strategies.
  • Content Delivery: AI ensures content resonates with diverse audiences through targeted delivery.
  • Automated Assistance: AI-driven chatbots provide instant information, guiding students through the application process and answering queries.

Types of AI-Generated Content

The integration of AI technology in higher education marketing enables the creation of diverse and engaging content types. These include visually appealing graphics and images, interactive formats that encourage user participation, automated generation of social media posts, and optimized content for landing pages and blogs. Additionally, AI facilitates the personalization of email campaigns based on user data, as well as the development of immersive virtual tours. Compelling course descriptions further enhance the overall marketing strategy, capturing the attention of prospective students and encouraging further exploration.

Higher education marketers can utilize various forms of AI-generated content, including:

  • Visual Content: Graphics and images created by AI enhance visual appeal.
  • Interactive Content: Engaging formats that encourage user interaction.
  • Social Media Posts: Automated generation of posts for social media platforms.
  • Landing Pages and Blog Posts: Content optimized for engagement and SEO.
  • Email Campaigns: Personalized email content based on user data.
  • Virtual Tours: AI-powered tours that provide an immersive campus experience.
  • Course Descriptions: Compelling descriptions get prospects to read more.

Developing an AI-Generated Content Strategy

AI has the power to revolutionize content creation. The key to unlocking valuable AI-generated content lies in using the right prompts. Properly framing these prompts and utilizing the tools effectively is crucial.

When developing AI marketing strategies for higher education, keep the following components in mind:

Setting Clear Objectives and Goals

AI serves as a powerful tool, but it’s not a standalone solution. To utilize it effectively, you need clear objectives and goals to engage your audience. Determine whether you want AI to help generate ideas, create written content, produce images, or develop videos for your marketing campaigns. AI can also assist in repurposing existing content and optimizing it for SEO, enhancing your marketing and promotional efforts.

When defining your objectives and goals, consider the following:

  • Outline Desired Outcomes: Clearly specify the knowledge and skills students should acquire.
  • Set Quality Benchmarks: Establish standards for content quality to meet educational criteria.
  • Align Content with Goals: Ensure that AI-generated content supports your defined objectives.
  • Implement Feedback Loops: Regularly refine and improve AI-generated content based on feedback.
  • Address Ethical Concerns: Maintain academic integrity by addressing ethical considerations.

Understanding your purpose and the specific achievements you seek through AI-generated content is crucial.

Understanding the Target Audience

Knowing your target audience is vital for creating effective content in higher education. Tailoring content to students’ needs, preferences, and academic goals boosts engagement and enhances learning outcomes.

To understand your target audience for higher education marketing using AI tools, consider:

  • Demographic Analysis: Study the demographic characteristics of your audience.
  • Prior Knowledge Levels: Assess the existing knowledge base of your audience.
  • Learning Preferences: Identify how your audience prefers to learn.
  • Cultural Diversity: Recognize and respect cultural differences within your audience.
  • Language Proficiency: Account for varying levels of language skills.
  • Technological Familiarity: Gauge your audience’s comfort with technology.
  • Academic Goals: Understand the educational aspirations of your audience.

This comprehensive understanding ensures that your educational materials are relevant, accessible, and resonate with the diverse needs of the student body, thereby enhancing your lead generation efforts in higher education marketing.

Selecting the Right AI Tools and Platforms

AI tools allow knowledge workers to analyze data, make predictions, and perform tasks more efficiently. Before investing in an AI platform, consider these key factors:

  • Flexibility and Compatibility: Ensure the tool integrates smoothly with your existing systems.
  • Scalability: Look for tools that can handle deep learning and grow with your needs.
  • Budget: Make sure the cost aligns with your financial constraints.
  • Algorithms and Optimization: Choose tools with powerful algorithms and optimization capabilities.
  • Security and Compliance: Ensure robust security measures and regulatory compliance.
  • Pre-Built APIs: Look for tools with pre-built cognitive APIs to speed up implementation.
  • Third-Party Integration: Verify that the tool integrates with other platforms you use.
  • Customized Support: Opt for tools that offer tailored support services.
  • Transparent Pricing: Seek clear and straightforward pricing models.
  • Trial Period: Test the platform before committing to a purchase.

Consider your project’s specific needs, the learning curve, and future planning when selecting an AI platform.

Content Creation and Curation

In higher education marketing, effective content creation and curation are essential for attracting and retaining students. Tailor your content to highlight academic excellence, campus life, and career opportunities to engage prospective students.

Strategies include:

  • Creating Compelling Content: Develop blog posts, videos, and social media content that showcase unique aspects of your institution.
  • Curating Existing Content: Select and organize existing materials to build credibility and authority. A well-executed strategy positions your institution as a thought leader and fosters trust.

Writing AI-Generated Articles:

Use AI algorithms to generate written content. Leverage natural language processing to create coherent, contextually relevant articles, saving time and enhancing productivity.

Creating AI-Generated Visuals:

Utilize AI to generate images, graphics, or multimedia content. This enhances visual appeal and supports communication, ensuring efficiency and creativity in visual representation.

Quality Control and Human Oversight

In higher education content generation, quality control and human oversight are crucial. Human oversight is necessary to review, refine, and correct AI-generated content, ensuring it aligns with academic integrity.

Establish rigorous quality standards to maintain accuracy and meet educational objectives. This process helps mitigate biases, ethical issues, and content inaccuracies, balancing technological capabilities with human expertise.

As a higher-education marketer, it’s essential to ensure your content resonates with the target audience and meets high standards of relevance, reliability, and educational efficacy. Additionally, AI can suggest various methods and strategies to personalize your content effectively.

Ensuring Compliance and Ethical Considerations

While AI can boost productivity and creativity in higher education, it also raises ethical questions, such as the implications of machines mimicking human creativity and authorship.

Reliability and accuracy are paramount when using AI content-generation tools. Since these tools depend on algorithms and machine learning, there’s a risk of producing false or misleading information. Regular updates and rigorous testing can improve the reliability and accuracy of AI-generated content.

Ethical considerations for using AI content tools in higher education include:

  • Transparency, Disclosure, and Accountability: Clearly communicate the use of AI and be accountable for its outputs.
  • Data Privacy and Protection: Safeguard personal information used by AI tools.
  • Social and Cultural Implications: Be mindful of the social and cultural impact of AI-generated content.
  • Copyright Laws and Fair Use Doctrine: Adhere to copyright regulations and ensure fair use.
  • Plagiarism and Copyright Infringement: Avoid plagiarism and respect intellectual property rights.
  • Proper Attribution and Citation: Accurately attribute sources and provide proper citations.

By following industry standards and best practices, AI tools can achieve higher accuracy and reliability, enhancing their overall value.

Implementing an AI-Generated Content Strategy

Integrating an AI-generated content strategy in higher education marketing requires seamless coordination with existing efforts to boost engagement and communication. By utilizing AI to create customized content for diverse audiences, institutions can deliver personalized messages that resonate with prospective students, faculty, and stakeholders.

To refine strategies, it is crucial to measure and evaluate the performance of AI-generated content. Employing key performance indicators (KPIs) such as engagement rates, conversion metrics, and audience feedback ensures a data-driven approach. Continuous improvement and optimization, driven by analytics, allow higher education marketers to adapt dynamically, maintaining relevance and impact.

The Future of AI in Higher Education Marketing

AI is set to elevate higher education marketing strategies to new heights. Its future is multifaceted, addressing everything from personalized learning to operational efficiency. AI tools play a significant role in creating adaptive learning programs tailored to each student’s needs.

Personalized Learning Paths: Combining digital marketing with AI-generated content allows for educational materials tailored to individual needs, enhancing engagement and performance by offering a customized learning experience.

Chatbots for Student Support: AI-powered chatbots assist prospective and current students with inquiries, applications, and general support. They provide instant responses, improving efficiency and enhancing the overall student experience.

Predictive Analytics for Student Success: Utilizing machine learning algorithms, institutions can predict factors affecting student success, identifying at-risk students early. This proactive approach enables targeted interventions, improving retention rates and overall academic outcomes.

Final Thoughts

AI is revolutionizing higher education by employing data-driven strategies that engage students and enhance their academic journey. It disrupts administrative, teaching, learning, and research activities, transforming the future of education.

In higher ed marketing, an AI-generated content strategy not only improves outreach but also personalizes it, boosting student recruitment and enrollment. Understanding prospects more deeply allows for a nuanced grasp of their behavior, preferences, and needs.

By embracing AI, higher education institutions can leverage its potential for improvement across the board. With guidance from higher education marketing consultants, AI can help tailor lesson plans, assessments, and overall student experiences, driving significant advancements in education.

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Double Tapping Your Zombie Pages to Kill Index Bloat

Double Tap Zombie Pages for Index Bloat

Zombies may be the most overplayed and trite concept of the modern era in entertainment, but that won’t keep me from using the reference. When referring to web pages, zombies are those pages that your site doesn’t need. Zombie pages are the lifeless pieces of your site that just won’t die.

Why would a person have boring and lifeless content on their website? Often it is unintentional, but sometimes we just become content hoarders, unable to let bad content die. A strategic zombie hunt can eliminate your index bloat and get put your vibrant, living content back in the limelight where it belongs.

What are Zombie Pages?

There are many different types of web pages that can become useless, or devalued over time. Some may even start as fairly useless, or harmful, even. Here are some of the more common types of zombie pages that may be contributing to your SEO problems through index bloating.

Old Content

Many of the pages that are considered zombies are just old. They may have been written with an old strategy in mind, or just simply became outdated over the years. For instance, if you are wanting your website to rank for terms related to the newest internet software available, having 4,000 pages of content written about software from 1998 are probably not going to help you in your endeavors. Pruning that content out will help the newer content from being diluted with old, irrelevant content.

Mistakenly Published Content

A zombie hunt I recently went on was all about the oops factor. Our site was set to create a stock photo page for every photo that was saved as media on the site. As you can imagine, this thin content wasting our Google crawl budget was NOT a good thing. Thankfully, problems like this can often be rectified by a simple, global change to the site. The rest is just waiting for Google to take notice of your zombie slaughter.

Duplicate Content

Many zombie pages are duplicates of other pages on your site. If you have duplicate content on your site without attributing it with the rel=canonical tag in the head, it can impact your search results. If you have multiple occurrences of “appreciably similar” content pieces, as Google calls them, search engines have a hard time determining which version is most relevant for a given search query.

What is Index Bloat?

When you have a bunch of unnecessary pages being indexed on your site, Google and other retrieval systems have to spend more time processing your content than necessary. Think of your top content as needles and the zombie pages as hay in a haystack. If you want Google to find the needles, having less hay in your haystack REALLY helps.

Bloating your site with useless content can lead to a poor user experience, too. While that in itself is bad, Google will pick up on poor user metrics and consider that data when making ranking decisions.

Identifying Zombie Pages

So what do zombie pages look like? Are they drooling while slowly mumbling something about brains? Not exactly, but nearly as simple as that. Use your metrics to identify your low quality pages. Here are some metrics to consider:

  • Total visits (Pageviews)
  • Bounce Rate
  • Average Time on Page
  • Unique Pageviews
  • Pages per session (Pages/Session)
  • Exit rate

If a page has few visitors, but has great semantic SEO value with rich content, you may want to keep it. Also, consider the pages per session. If a page tends to keep visitors on the site, it may be worth keeping, too.

Stay down, zombie!

Kill Your Zombie Pages with the Double Tap Method

What is the best way to get rid of zombie pages? Why, the Double Tap method, of course. Just as the characters in Zombieland use the double tap method to ensure zombies stay dead, we can use a similar technique to get kill zombie pages and have engines de-index them once and for all.

Quarantine and Kill Your Zombie Pages

How do you handle the undead? Quarantine them! The same is true with undead, useless web pages. Once you identify said pages, you can do several things. Here are some of them:

Delete Old Content

Want to make sure that zombie stays down? Delete the page and any associated media files that aren’t needed. Google can’t index what isn’t there.

Cannibalize the Content

Is there some value left in that undead piece you wrote in the 90s? Don’t kill it, cannibalize it! Take one or more pieces of content and revamp or combine them to give them new life.

Mark as No-Index

Marking pages as “noindex” in your robots file can be an effective way to keep the content from search engine indices. There are plugins that make this a simple process for those less tech-savvy.

Double Tap the Zombies for Quick De-Indexing

How do you take a zombie down and keep them down? The Double Tap SEO method, of course. After you’ve deleted the content, or marked it as “no-index,” their SERP “ghosts” will remain in your search results until the search engine knows its gone.

To hasten your zombies final demise, you can double tap them using Google’s “Remove URL Tool.” This tells Google that your page needs to be removed from their index ASAP. If you have thousands of pages, this may be too much work, but if you do this, you’ll see those pages removed from your results much faster. Otherwise, it could take weeks for the Google bots to get to it.

Don’t Be Gun Shy When it Comes to Zombie Pages

The key to an effective website pruning is to use your head and not your heart. Look at the metrics and consider the value of each page objectively. If you can’t stand to delete something, just unpublish it until you find a purpose for it.

Index bloat can really bog your site down and keep it from realizing its true potential. Once your star content is allowed to shine, you’ll be glad you double tapped.

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Entomophagy: The Science and Art of Eating Insects

Entomophagy - Eat Insects and mayhbe save us all

Current food strategies in the U.S. are contributing to myriad issues from global warming to obesity.  There have been many solutions proposed, and some implemented over the years with little success.  In this essay I’d like to explore using insects as food in order to find solutions for many of the problems associated with the production, distribution, consumption, and disposal of food within our current system. 

The average American consumes 224 pounds of meat annually. (CME Group, 2011)  This meat is usually the products of beef, pork, and chicken.  Fish, turkey, veal and lamb make up significantly smaller portions of this total.  It can range from 4.7 to 20 pounds of feed to increase a cow’s weight by one pound. (National Research Council, 2000)  Hogs require about four pounds of feed to gain one pound of mass (Reese, Liptrap, Parker, Cromwell, & Stahly, 1985), and chickens have a conversion ratio of 2-3 pounds feed to one pound gained. (The Livestock, Environment and Development Initiative, 2006) 

The plant products on which these animals feed require huge amounts of land for their production.  Methods used to grow them are environmentally harmful, require large amounts of energy, and use many resources in an unsustainable manner. 

Efficiency of Insects

Many insects have food conversion ratios of less than two pounds of feed to one pound of weight gained.  If we incorporated bugs into our current food systems for protein, we could decrease the amount of land needed to create feed for production animals. 

On top of their efficient food conversion, insects can feed on pre-supermarket waste such as bean husks so they wouldn’t compete with existing animal production needs.  Some insects can even feed on non-food waste, such as paper.  Both these factors would contribute to lessening the total amount of land needed to feed our food animals and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 

Aside from needing less food in order to reach “slaughter age,” insects can be raised using space far more efficiently and less environmentally harmful than modern cattle.  The total amount of land degradation, including from water erosion, wind erosion, chemical degradation, and physical degradation associated with raising cattle across the globe is 19.65 million square kilometers, which is about 13% of the total land on earth. (The Livestock, Environment and Development Initiative, 2006)  We cannot continue this trend much longer.  Insects need only warmth, water and food to grow, so they can be grown nearly everywhere. 

Abandoned warehouses and buildings in and around cities could be repurposed to house local production facilities.  Insects can be grown in tight spaces in vertical modular cabinet-like structures.  A current startup is planning on incorporating both of these ideas into their business model. 

Entomophagy-Eat-Insect-Nate-Ralph

The Insect Consumption Process

Ento (short for entomophagy, the practice of eating bugs) is a company in London that is capitalizing on this yet untapped resource in western cultures.  They are using modern cuisine techniques to make visually appealing, delicious insect dishes.  Many are unrecognizable as insect products, and resemble something more like a sushi platter. 

Part of Ento’s plan is to play on the current entomophagy taboo in western cultures by using peer pressure to get people to try their products.  Since this concept is new to western cultures, packages would inform the consumer on appropriate serving size, serving suggestions, and nutrition content.  They have designs for scalable, modular cabinet systems for production that can be easily transported.  These systems could be used efficiently in a variety of existing abandoned structures. 

Urban insect farms can be personal or community endeavors as well.  Every major city has laws against keeping farm animals within city limits, but few, if any, have restrictions on raising edible insects.  Anyone with space under a table or desk can grow bugs.   Community insect farming projects could help to bring local communities together and ensure local economic growth.  People could exchange different species like tomato growers do with heirloom variety seeds.  We would reduce food miles dramatically and help people obtain food security by employing these techniques.  

Insects provide high quality protein and supplement the diet significantly with minerals and vitamins that are in short supply in developing nations.  Most bugs are a good source of essential fatty acids, some containing more than oily fish. (DeFoliart, 1992)  If not used as a direct food source for humans, insects could be fed to animals to increase their levels of Omega-3s and other essential fatty acids.  We would then benefit by eating those animals.  It is more efficient to eat the insects directly because after having been consumed by the cattle, only about 10% of its total energy will be passed to the next consumer.  

Humans have been eating insects for thousands of years.  Aristotle recorded how the Greeks enjoyed eating the cicada, and Herodotus and Pliny described such delicacies as the locust and the larvae of the longicorn beetle. (Morris, 2008) There are at least 1386 known edible varieties consumed by humans (Verkerk, Tramper, van Trijp, & Martens, 2007), so this is not a new phenomenon.  It is, however, a bit foreign to Americans.  Fear Factor was a reality television show dedicated in large part to forcing people to break this taboo, and those that watched contestants chew on caterpillars and crickets squealed painfully in disgust.  Ironically, these participants were rewarded for eating what people from some cultures simply call “food.”

Where did this insect aversion come from in Western culture?  There is no innate dislike for insects in humans.  It’s possible it came from the ‘civilizing process’ stemming from aristocratic court, which began defining etiquette in ways that made insect eating anti-social. (Morris, 2008)  Eating insects therefore became ‘uncivilized’ and deemed primitive. 

Will Americans ever eat insects?  Many Americans eat a bug product every day and don’t even know it.  Female Cochineal bugs contain a red chemical that is used as a dye in many food products.  Starbucks uses it in their strawberry frappuccinos (Jaslow, 2012), Nestle’ colors their red Smarties with it (Barton, 2007), and many other companies us it in a variety of food products.  Both Starbucks and Nestlé are phasing the chemical out of their products, but it is here to stay in many others. 

Aside from Ento and more clandestine approaches to entomophagy, it is actually becoming a small trend in gourmet cuisine.  The Brooklyn Kitchen has several bug dishes on their menu and hosts sell-out dinners composed of mostly insects. (Lazarowitz, 2010)  Dishes are starting to pop up around the country, and distribution is getting a little better.

Potential Risks

Expanding insect farming in the United States could lead to increased incidents of invasive species.  With almost 2,000 varieties of edible insects to choose from, we’re bound to run into some that find environments to thrive in.  This could cause unpredictable amounts of environmental harm for years or decades.  If a mega-farm filled with Aristotle’s cicadas suddenly evacuated its residents, the insects could eat nearly every piece of vegetation for miles.  Safety measures would have to be enacted and followed to keep incidents from happening.  If the process were gradual enough, regulators would stay ahead.

An infrastructure would need to be in place for the success of American insect farms.  Food safety and sanitation protocols would have to be devised and maintained.  Growth in this industry is likely to be slow enough for the infrastructure and protocols to grow up around it for some years to come.

Insect protein could be a viable option for our food needs in the near future.  They can eat many waste products that traditional cattle cannot and convert that food into body mass at a rate better than cows, pigs, and chickens.  The nutritional aspects of insects are better than those of traditional meat animals.  Insects can be raised nearly anywhere, including existing abandoned structures for a good use of urban space.  The biggest obstacle for large-scale implementation is the taboo associated with eating six-legged creatures in contemporary American society.  If trends in population growth and food preferences continue, we may have to get over it out of necessity. 

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