(HorizonPost.com) – Social media went wild last month about a news report that billionaire Microsoft founder Bill Gates was promoting a new alternative milk product made from pureed maggots. The story spread like wildfire on social media and was subsequently picked up by other blogs.
However, there was just one problem with the viral story.
The blog Slay News, a site known for peddling false information, published a phony story last month claiming that Gates was behind a new product called EntoMilk. According to its “report,” the source of the story was the conspiracy site InfoWars.
Users on Facebook and Instagram spread the story on social media, prompting other well-known conspiracy blogs to follow suit.
While there is such a product as EntoMilk, Bill Gates has nothing to do with it.
The Gates Foundation confirmed that EntoMilk has no connection to the foundation or Bill Gates. The Foundation’s investment portfolio does not include anything about so-called “maggot milk” in general or the specific product EntoMilk.
EntoMilk was introduced in 2017 by a South African company called Gourmet Grubb.
A 2019 feature on Gourmet Grubb described the company as a “Cape Town-based start-up” that was seeking to introduce the world to eating insects as an alternative source of protein.
Gourmet Grubb made ice cream products using the milk alternative EntoMilk. The product, which is made of pureed larvae from the black soldier fly, was only available in South Africa.
The company posted a promotional video on YouTube about its EntoMilk product in 2018. Since then, Gourmet Grubb’s website no longer exists and the company’s account on Instagram has been dormant since 2020.
The fake story likely gained traction because of Bill Gates’ history of promoting alternative food sources to address Climate Change.
The billionaire supported faux meat products made from fungus and other plant-based sources. In recent years, he has also invested in companies that produce lab-grown meat products.
Gates also suggested that wealthy countries should transition to “100% synthetic beef” as a way to reduce emissions and address climate change.
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