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[NSW] Free Insect Laden Ice Cream from The Economist - Ice Cream Truck visiting Various Locations from Mar 8 - Mar 16

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This insect-laden ice cream truck will be popping up around Sydney for 2 weeks in March and is part of the The Economist magazine's new Feeding the Future campaign.

Thursday, March 8 - Henry Deane Plaza, 8am–7pm
Friday, March 9 - Martin Place, 12pm–5pm
Sunday, March 11 - Manly Wharf, 10am–6pm
Monday. March 12 - University of Sydney, 10am–5pm
Tuesday, March 13 - UTS, 10am–5pm
Thursday, March 15 - University of Sydney, 10am–5pm
Friday, March 16 - Chatswood Mall Market - 9am–9pm

Ps. forget about those free Ben&Jerry’s or discounted Haagen Dazs/Magnums ice creams LOL

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closed Comments

  • +6

    SICK! 🤙

  • +46

    Something about this bugs me…

    • +4

      Ant these delicious?

      • It tastes like cockroach, only crunchy.

        • -2

          Tv's a bit BUGGY atm and couldn't watch the CRICKET, so thought I'd SCURRY onto OzB and see what's ahhh FLAPpening :)

    • How will I know if there’s a fly in my ice cream ?

  • +11

    Isnt that just like a Macca's soft serve?

  • -2
    • +5

      Well, uncooked snails/slugs is different from insects. So……

      • -1

        so these insects are cooked?

    • That's it, I'm never eating ANYTHING ever again1!


      1. May not actually be true. 

    • Holy snapping rat shit. Didn't expect that to happen.

    • reminds me of this movie: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0221633/

      • wow, Dean Stockwell in cast, can't be supershite film… I hope

        • He plays the Sheriff in the movie, watch it.

  • +3

    I've heard its great for the immune system.

    • -6

      Doesn't mean it's true.

      In some parts if Chine dog meat is commonly praised for its good taste and health benefits. It is believed to be good for one’s ‘yang’, which stands for the hot (in contrast to the ‘ying’, which is cool). It is said to provide warmth in the winter and to have medicinal value. Not only is it presumed to be good for the liver; it supposedly also enhances the male sex drive (Roberts 2004, 20; Liu 2006; Hopkins 2004, 20)

      • +3

        Your point is?

      • +4

        I'm not sure if this has completely gone over your head but immune system > counters diseases (memory B cells remember pathogens for next time etc.) insects > have disease.

        Didn't really need the Chinese dog sex drive reference.

        • +1

          The diseases carried by insects are caused by the fact that they live in extremely dirty environments / diet is filth.

          The insects used would presumably be chosen for those that don't carry parasites etc and fed a 'clean' diet so not really.

        • +2

          @Merlict: So backpedalling just a sec - insects are purely bred to be chucked into ice cream and given out for free? They'll probably be a whole society of socialists and nature lovers there protesting.

          thick chocolate with grasshopper chunks, strawberry with mealworm swirls and neapolitan with mixed bugs

          There are literally portions of insects in there. The picture displays half a cockroach. Also, all these insects need to eat and defecate. Where else are they going to do it?
          What is this, Fear Factor?

        • Insects are eaten in several Asian countries with no I'll effect.
          Can't think of any diseases we get from insects apart from blood-sucking ones like mosquitoes and ticks.

        • No offence intended.

          Point was that just because we hear about it doesn't make it true, hence the dog eating reference. Poor dogs

        • +1

          @pennypincher98: The vast majority of socialists and nature lovers eat meat. Why on earth would they care about insects but not cattle?

        • -1

          @callum9999: Because they are eating steaks not cows so are able to dissociate the two. If you are eating whole and portioned insects you can very much see the insects in there.
          Also, subjective opinion but if I am going to eat an animal/meat I want it to taste good.

        • @callum9999: Socialist's and Nature Lover's are two different things.

        • @Charity: I don't recall ever saying they weren't?

      • +18

        So not only good for your yang, but for your wang too.

  • +3

    …mind out for the puddles of spew three meters down the road

  • +2

    bugger….i was gonna post this deal too but you beat me to it :(

  • +2

    A positive review from when there was insect icecream given away last time.

  • I'm always surprised that people pos vote this deal.

  • +2

    For the non-insectivores: Grab a pair of tweezers and clear your schedule for the day

    • Why? Don't you want a big scoop of mint & bug chip?

  • +3

    I thought I read the title wrong but nope, did not misread.

  • bugs aren't good my computer so why would they be good for me?

    • +3

      Too many bugs can actually make you indestructible

      Like my boss here

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYFcT9sDSBs

      • +1

        I didn't even have to click on it to know that was the link

    • +1

      bugs aren't good my computer so why would they be good for me?

      You aren't a computer.

      • +2

        maybe I am, and you and ozbargain are just part of my program.

  • +10

    It doesn't matter how much delicious insects they put on it, there's just no way to make strawberry ice cream eatable.

    • +14

      edible* :)

      • Palatable works as well.

      • Thomas Edison == Thomas, Eat a Son (Q.E.D.)

    • +1

      Strawberry is my favourite. I always scoop out the strawberry stripe from the Neapolitan tub before the others.

  • +3

    I guess free is the only way they're going to get people to try this… :P

  • +1

    So why exactly are they putting bugs in otherwise good ice cream? It's not like they're making it vegan friendly or anything by using bugs instead of cream… It still has all the usual stuff in it, just added bugs as well - and refrigerating stuff just to dispose of it because nobody will eat it isn't exactly good for the environment. I seriously want to know what possible reason there is for doing this?

    • +7

      Probably an attempt to change public perception of eating insects? Take a popular treat everyone likes and hope they're brave enough to try it with some interesting toppings.

      • +3

        Yeah, this feels like it's too easy to put everyone but the bravest off though. Cricket flour is a great introduction to insects, using it to make corn(cricket)chips and other basic things, without the visual element to put you off. Very interesting flavour.

      • +3

        This. Eating bugs is supposed to be a good source of protein and should solve food/nutrition problems in some places.

        If humans in general can eat a once living, breathing, warm and bleeding mammal and they can also eat things that look like gigantic fearsome insects except they come from the ocean, I think the hope is that we can also tap into other sources for food once we break the mentality of grossness.

        • +1

          In those places where eating bugs means surviving, I don't think ice cream is on the menu.

        • @Nukkels:

          That's the very point though. They are trying to reduce the mentality of "would only eat bugs to survive" by raising awareness that eating bugs can solve problems other than just survival. These are problems which exist in places where ice cream is available and the solution is based on the very fact that you can survive eating bugs.

          The problem they are trying to solve is more to do with being economical for environmental/resourcing purposes.

      • +2

        it isn't to change people's minds about eating insects. Its about signalling the virtue of The Economist to attract the kind of subscriber it seems to want these days.

        Back in the day when I used to work for an economics organisation, The Economist was a must have subscription. In the last decade though most of my peers have stopped the sub as it is now more of a, shall we say, interventionist, big government rag with economics opinion articles that are notable for their lack of diversity and political cheerleading. The Economist is now in trouble so it is trying on these kinds of stunts to attract new subs.

        • That's my observation too. They really annoyed me with their Pro-EU/anti-Brexit coverage.

    • +4

      Publicity?

    • I understood the Chinese encouraged their people to eat rats; "Kill 2 birds with 1 stone" theory.

      No, you wont see me eating bugs … or rats!

      Recycling; sugar cane to mulch, cane toads to leather, bugs to … (no, I won't say it).

      😭😲😞😝😖😵

    • +1

      They've had a few articles about how bugs can meet our protein needs for far less cost/damage to the environment than meat. Now they're putting your mouth where their mouth is.

    • +4

      They're moving us a step at a time towards soylent green.

      "Soylent pink is bugs!"

      Oh that's not so bad I guess.

      "Soylent green is people!"

      I've eaten bugs before, I'm OK with this.

      • +2

        I’m going to design some “I’m OK with this” stickers/pins/t-shirts! Right after I work out how to exit this website. Are you OK with this?

        • +2

          I'm OK with this!

  • Triangle slug ice cream, anyone?

  • +3

    FREE — my lunch for the next three days, apetite has left the building.

  • +1

    Maybe this is how Zombies will come about

  • +17

    Why icecream though?
    I mean, I understand the reason they’re trying to popularise eating bugs, but I’ve seen, erm, for lack of better words, tastier ways of serving bugs on food channels that would definitely go down easier than bug icecream.
    It’s like, “Oh you’ve never had roo meat before? It’s great, here, try a roo meat milkshake”

    • There's been other types of bug food (like of the deepfried kind or bug muesli bar). They're probably just trying to see what avenues will work and in icecream will probably be like little chia/sesame/poppy seeds. Looks like cookies and cream tbh.

    • I've seen on different food shows where the insects are dried and then ground into a "flour", and then used as such for baking, etc. Also, the sugar/fat/flavourings in the ice cream will also disguise the true taste and therefore more likely to give the "experiment" a more positive response.

  • +4

    I'm sure if you leave your food out long enough at picnics, it will be same effect as this.

  • +3

    This does seem a bit counter productive to what they should be trying to achieve here. I think most of us understand that there needs to be more sustainable ways developed with food production, but chunks of insects is not going to be it.

    • +1

      Yeah, like… A ground up insect paste mixed in with the rest of the ingredients would be many times more appetising.

      This just reminds me of that Rick & Morty episode

  • I'm all for eating insects, but not if it's more expensive than other animal protein as it is now!

  • -1

    Protein Source of the Future…Now!

  • +4

    Stupid AF

  • +1

    That's it, Im going vegetarian!

    • -6

      Well the veggies probably eat more insects than the carnivores … or the omnivores for that matter. Perhaps they don't always look hard enough to discover the bugs lurking in every plateful.

      Don't read if you are a sensitive soul:

      I soaked some sultanas for a recipe once. Biggest, fattest worm ever appeared; bleh!

      • what are you on about?!

        • -1

          I see; a vegan misunderstanding.

          We were always told as children that bugs in your fresh veggie produce are a good sign that they have not had too many insecticides sprayed on them. That is the positive. The negative is the more you eat of them the more you are going to have that occurrence so you need to be extra vigilant.

          Ps. True what I said about the sultanas. I would not have noticed the dehydrated worm if it wasn't for the soaking.

          Unrelated, and off topic, is that I rarely eat meat.

        • @JediJan: I never said anti-pesticide. How about eating veggies that do get sprayed? Geez

        • @havok44: ☺
          Living in close proximity to a market garden has done more to put me off eating vegetables than anything else. Sign indicates "recycled water in use."

          We have sprayed and unsprayed veggies here; all receive a jolly thorough washing.

  • oh helll nawwwwwwwwwwwwwww

  • Man that cockroach wing in the website looks crunchy

  • +1

    Strange.

  • Apparently the future is tricking people into eating spoilt food.

  • +3

    Do try this at home!

    Step 1. Buy Connoisseur mmm ice cream (cheap generics are allowed)
    Step 2. Leave out on patio for an hour
    Step 3. Eat your GOURMET bug ice cream, oh yeah!

    • +3

      Don't forget to stir every 10 minutes for even protein distribution throughout.

  • New alternative for those with peanut allergies?

  • +8

    I'm an OzBargainer, get me out of here!

  • +6

    This might create a buzz

    • Go sit in the corner and think about what you have done.

  • +4

    This might actually fly out the door!

  • +1

    Mothra Mocha flavour please.

  • +2

    I would maybe eat if it was just ants but you just ruined everything by putting in that headless cockroach

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