Vending machines now selling edible insects for those game enough to try

They're a little crunchy, but despite having a reputation as a pest, a vending machine in Melbourne is now offering edible bugs for anyone game enough to try.

From lemon myrtle mealworms, to cricket protein corn chips and even ants encased in hard candy, there is something for everyone.

But while the idea of putting a worm, ant or any creepy crawly in your mouth is enough to make anyone squirm, these bugs are actually highly nutritious.

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Edible Bug Shop and Circle Harvest founder, Skye Blackburn, is behind the new vending machine at the National Gallery of Victoria and she said it was a no-brainer putting her skills as a qualified food scientist and entomologist to good use.

"Cricket protein powder for example is actually 69 per cent digestible protein, it's got four times the amount of calcium as milk, three times the amount of iron as spinach and it's got a complete amino acid profile as well," she told Today Extra.

"We actually have lots of customers who are vegan or vegetarian for environmental or ethical reasons that will start to include insects in their diet.

"So if you replace one meat-based meal a week with a meal that includes insects as your source of protein instead, you actually save over 100,000 litres of drinking water a year."

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The Edible Bug Shop range isn't just straight-up whole insects, but also provides recipes and supplements to create tasty treats and meals you would normally enjoy.

Skye said things like cakes, cereals and hot meals taste even better and are even better for you and your family with the added secret ingredient.

"That's the point, you can have what you would normally eat, but you're just eating a more nutrient-dense version of that food," she said.

Would you try edible bugs if you really needed a snack? Let us know