Insect lipids as novel food ingredients: Linking molecular structure and quality attributes to food applications and industrial translation.

Processing of edible insects generates compositionally diverse lipid fractions, but food-ingredient development is constrained by variable quality and limited understanding of how molecular structure determines product performance. Previous reviews have emphasized fatty acid composition, extraction, and direct food use, while offering limited guidance on selecting or modifying oils for specific applications. This review addresses that gap through a structure-property-application framework linking fatty acid, triacylglycerol architecture, minor constituents, and production history with quality, digestion, and food function. Direct incorporation is feasible when native physical and sensory properties match product requirements. Emulsification, oleogelation, fractionation, and enzymatic restructuring can overcome specific functional limitations, but most remain at formulation or prototype scale. Evidence linking insect-lipid structure with digestion is emerging, whereas broader biological effects remain preclinical. Translation requires application-specific specifications, flavor and residual-allergen control, and validation in realistic food matrices through storage studies, consumer testing, and pilot-scale production.