Edible insects | Compton company provides alternative, sustainable protein

Shipping supervisor Raul Nieves scoops up a container of live “Superworm” brand giant mealworms that are shipped throughout North America for people to eat.

(Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Sept. 3, 2015 9:05 AM PT

Two billion people around the world consider insects a dietary staple, but they’ve been in the American food supply for just a few years.

Gillian Spence, owner of Rainbow Mealworms in Compton, holds a Madagascar hissing roach that she says is cooked and consumed as a party food by people in the Vietnamese and Mexican communities.

(Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Almost an entire block of former houses on Spruce Street in Compton is now a suburban “farm” where family-owned Rainbow Mealworms raises insects for human consumption.

(Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Arturo Rodriguez feeds carrots to “Golden Giants” mealworms being grown as food for humans at Rainbow Mealworms in Compton.

(Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Black and gold “Superworm” brand mealworms are a premium product developed and grown here at Rainbow Mealworms in Compton.

(Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Mario Lozano fills a tray with 1-inch-long golden mealworms that will soon be shipped live to customers who use them as food.

(Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Foreman David Diaz prepares to ship mealworms live from Rainbow Mealworms in Compton. Customers in the U.S., Canada, Puerto Ricto and the U.S. Virgin Islands are among those who eat the creatures as food.

(Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)