Frozen, paste, dried and powder forms of Alphitobius diaperinus larvae (lesser mealworm): authorised novel food in the EU
Frozen, paste, dried and powder forms of Alphitobius diaperinus larvae (lesser mealworm) is on the Union list of authorised novel foods (Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2470). Conditions of use and maximum levels by food category: 22 entries, quoted below.
- Regulation
- Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2470, Annex, Table 1
- Listed as
- Frozen, paste, dried and powder forms of Alphitobius diaperinus larvae (lesser mealworm)
- Text version
- Consolidated text of 10 August 2026
- Version
- Consolidated text of 10 August 2026
- Official source
- Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2470, Annex, Union list of novel foods
Conditions of use and maximum levels
Table 1, column "Conditions under which the novel food may be used", as written:
- Cereal bars: 25 (Dried form) 25 (Powder form)
- Bread and rolls: 20 (Powder form)
- Processed and breakfast cereals: 10 (Dried form) 10 (Powder form)
- Porridge: 15 (Powder form)
- Pre-mixes (dry) for baked products: 10 (Powder form)
- Dried pasta-based products: 10 (Powder form)
- Stuffed pasta-based products: 28 (Frozen or paste form) 10 (Powder form)
- Whey powder: 35 (Powder form)
- Soups: 15 (Powder form)
- Cereal-, pasta-based dishes: 5 (Powder form)
- Pizza-based dishes: 5 (Dried form) 5 (Powder form)
- Noodles: 10 (Powder form)
- Snacks other than chips: 10 (Dried form) 10 (Powder form)
- Chips/crisps: 10 (Powder form)
- Crackers and bread sticks: 10 (Powder form)
- Peanut butter: 15 (Powder form)
- Ready-to-eat savoury based sandwich: 20 (Powder form)
- Meat preparations: 14 (Frozen or paste form) 5 (Powder form)
- Meat analogues: 40 (Frozen or paste form) 15 (Powder form)
- Milk and dairy analogues: 10 (Powder form)
- Chocolate confectionary: 5 (Powder form)
- Food supplements as defined in Directive 2002/46/EC for the adult population: 4 g/day (Powder form)
Additional specific labelling requirements
1. The designation of the novel food on the labelling of the foodstuffs containing it shall be ‘Frozen/paste Alphitobius diaperinus larvae (lesser mealworm)’ or ‘Dried/powder Alphitobius diaperinus larvae (lesser mealworm)’ depending on the form used. 2. The labelling of food supplements containing the novel food shall bear a statement that those food supplements should not be consumed by persons under 18 years of age. 3. The labelling of the foodstuffs containing frozen, paste, dried or powder forms of Alphitobius diaperinus larvae (lesser mealworm) shall bear a statement that this ingredient may cause allergic reactions to consumers with known allergies to crustaceans, and products thereof, and to dust mites. This statement shall appear in close proximity to the list of ingredients.
Specification (Table 2)
Table 2 of the Annex, row with the same name, as written:
Description/Definition:
The novel food consists of the frozen, paste, dried, and powder forms of the whole lesser mealworm. The term ‘lesser mealworm’ refers to the larval form of Alphitobius diaperinus, an insect species that belongs to the family of Tenebrionidae (darkling beetles).
The entire lesser mealworms are meant for human consumption, no parts are removed.
The novel food is intended to be marketed in 4 different forms, namely: (i) whole blanched and frozen A. diaperinus larvae (ADL frozen), (ii) paste from whole blanched, ground, and frozen A. diaperinus larvae (ADL paste), (iii) whole blanched, and freeze-dried A. diaperinus larvae (ADL dried), and (iv) powder from whole blanched, freeze-dried and ground A. diaperinus larvae (ADL powder).
A minimum 24 hours fasting period is required to allow the larvae to discard their bowel content before killing the insects by a thermal treatment.
Characteristics/Composition (ADL frozen or paste):
Ash (% w/w): ≤ 1,5
Moisture (% w/w): 65-80
Crude protein (N × 6,25) (% w/w): 12-25
Digestible Carbohydrates (% w/w): 0,4-2
Fat (% w/w): 5-12
Peroxide value (Meq O2/kg fat): ≤ 0,2
Dietary fibre (% w/w): 1-4
(27)Chitin (% w/w): 1,0-2,6
Heavy metals:
Lead: ≤ 0,1 mg/kg
Cadmium: ≤ 0,05 mg/kg
Mycotoxins:
Aflatoxins (Sum of B1, B2, G1, G2): ≤ 4 μg/kg
Aflatoxin B1 (μg/kg): ≤ 2
Deoxynivalenol: ≤ 200 μg/kg
Ochratoxin A: ≤ 1 μg/kg
Microbiological criteria:
Total aerobic colony count: ≤ 105 (25)CFU/g
Yeasts and moulds: ≤ 100 CFU/g
Escherichia coli: ≤ 50 CFU/g
Salmonella spp.: Absence in 25 g
Listeria monocytogenes: Absence in 25 g
Sulphite-reducing Anaerobes: ≤ 30 CFU/g
Bacillus cereus: ≤ 100 CFU/g
Enterobacteriaceae: ≤ 100 CFU/g
Coagulase-positive staphylococci: ≤ 100 CFU/g
Characteristics/Composition (ADL dried or powder):
Ash (% w/w): ≤ 5
Moisture (% w/w): 1-5
Crude protein (N × 6,25) (% w/w): 50-70
Digestible Carbohydrates (% w/w): 1,5-3,5
Fat (% w/w): 20-35
Peroxide value (Meq O2/kg fat): ≤ 5
Dietary fibre (% w/w): 3-6
(27)Chitin (% w/w): 3,0-9,1
Heavy metals:
Lead: ≤ 0,1 mg/kg
Cadmium: ≤ 0,05 mg/kg
Mycotoxins:
Aflatoxins (Sum of B1, B2, G1, G2): ≤ 4 μg/kg
Aflatoxin B1 (μg/kg): ≤ 2
Deoxynivalenol: ≤ 200 μg/kg
Ochratoxin A: ≤ 1 μg/kg
Microbiological criteria:
Total aerobic colony count: ≤ 105 CFU/g
Yeasts and moulds: ≤ 100 CFU/g
Escherichia coli: ≤ 50 CFU/g
Salmonella spp.: Absence in 25 g
Listeria monocytogenes: Absence in 25 g
Sulfite-reducing Anaerobes: ≤ 30 CFU/g
Bacillus cereus: ≤ 100 CFU/g
Enterobacteriaceae: ≤ 100 CFU/g
Coagulase-positive staphylococci: ≤ 100 CFU/g
Source and version
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2470, Annex, Union list of novel foods, Table 1. Consolidated text of 10 August 2026. The text above is copied from that document without change except that amendment markers are removed. It is not advice and it does not decide whether a particular product is covered.
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