The rapid growth of insect production for food and feed in Europe in the 21st
century is accompanied by a need for better tools to assist producers in the diagnosis,
prevention and management of insect diseases, which may threaten productivity.
In this paper we introduce the main pathogens (viruses, bacteria, fungi)
associated with insect production in European facilities as well as their diagnosis.
Furthermore, we provide an introduction to insect immunity and we give
guidelines for the prevention and management of diseases in order to minimize
risk and losses to the producers. We describe our ongoing research on probiotics
as a tool to enhance insect health. More European collaborations on diagnosis
and management of insect diseases are needed, and our team welcomes insect
producers, veterinarians, food microbiologists etc. to develop such collaboration.