(CNN) Lobsters are not pretty. Dip these unsightly creatures into warm butter, and they instantly become a different matter to most of us. Why, then, do we gag at the thought of eating insects?

One Australian researcher hopes to change that. University of Queensland Meat Science Professor Louwrens Hoffman is exploring how maggots, locusts and other "alternative" proteins might be used or added to a range of specialty foods.

So why turn to bugs when you could have, say, a tasty steak? Quite simply, Hoffman believes conventional livestock will not be able to meet the global demand for meat, so alternatives are needed to replace or at least complement traditional protein sources.

"The biggest potential for sustainable protein production lies with insects and new plant sources," he said in a statement.

Studies show that Western consumers who may recoil from the idea of eating insect-based meals will try insects if they are processed and disguised -- tucked inside familiar favorites as it were, Hoffman said.