Kevin Wu loves a good challenge; after all, he manages not one but three businesses including a cricket farm
The world’s population is growing year-on-year and by 2050, it is projected there will be nearly 10 billion people on Earth. Worryingly, our current methods of farming use a lot of resources and are unsustainable in the long run. Should this continue, we face an uncertain future where food shortages could be a new reality.
Serial entrepreneur Kevin Wu understands the gravity of the situation and hopes to boost food production via his alternative protein startup, Ento. The 28-year-old lawyer started his entrepreneurial journey shortly after he left his job at a big corporate law firm in 2018. Deciding to take a break, he travelled around the world and visited Mexico City, where he tried cricket tacos. The tasty, though unusual, street snack caught Wu’s attention, and it sparked his interest in the alternative protein market, which was starting to pick up steam.
ICYMI: Ento Offers A More Sustainable Source Of Protein With Roasted Crickets
Upon returning from his travels, Wu spent months researching alternative proteins and kickstarted Ento. His goal was to remove the stigma of eating insects (or ‘entomophagy’) and normalise it for the general population. Those plans finally became a reality as Ento inaugurated its first farm in 2019.
From the beginning, Wu understood that the alternative protein industry was a very challenging business. “Research shows that insects are a better source of protein compared to normal meat, and are highly sustainable to farm,” he says.
Wu explains how the alternative protein industry is a niche, but there is enough room for a small startup to sustain itself and build up its expertise over time. “If we can capture the market, we can eventually branch out and expand to other areas,” he explains.
Ento originally started selling whole roasted crickets, though to make it more appealing to the masses they explored alternative methods of presenting the product. This includes the introduction of cricket powder, made of milled crickets, that can be used in a variety of different ways. This includes mixing it with salad dressing, smoothies, baking flour and more. Ento has even begun integrating its powder into burger patties, called Ento Meat.
See also: How Social Entrepreneur John-Hans Oei Is Making Farming Cool
According to Wu, this is all part of Ento’s process of research and innovation as they work with food technologists to find new ways to turn the powdered ingredient into something more familiar to people.
“We combine a range of different ingredients to make it into something familiar not just in terms of shape but also texture, how it is cooked, nutrition, taste and smell and the way it looks after it is cooked,” he explains.