
Black soldier fly maggots: high in protein with a small carbon footprint - classichasclass
https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/long-reads/article/3018276/maggots-future-food-high-protein-small-carbon
======
aketchum
I went deep down the rabbit hole for almost a month trying to figure out how
to farm escamoles[1] in an industrial ant farm. They sell for $40-100 per kg
and are apparently delicious (still haven't had the chance to try them
myself). I decided I didn't want to spend the effort involved in trying to set
up the world's first industrial ant egg farm but all the research did convince
me there should be a market for insect protein, although I think the effort
should be directed at feeding livestock.

Chickens are an obvious option but what really stuck out to me was the
opportunity for feeding farmed fish. Farmed fish need protein to grow (duh)
and the protein they are fed is generally fishmeal made up of smaller
"worthless" fish caught by commercial fishing vessels. The problem is that it
takes 5 lbs of fishmeal to grow a pound of farmed fish. Not very sustainable
if farmed fishing is supposed to protect wild fish populations. Fishmeal
fetches a price between $1500 and $2000 per metric ton [2], so there is a
market for a viable replacement.

In the end, I realized I was basically redesigning a company that a fraternity
brother had started several years earlier - Grubbly Farms [3]. All this is to
say that I think insects as a protein source are very exciting and I look
forward to seeing how the industry evolves.

1 -
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escamol](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escamol)

2 - [https://www.indexmundi.com/commodities/?commodity=fish-
meal&...](https://www.indexmundi.com/commodities/?commodity=fish-
meal&months=120)

3 - [https://grubblyfarms.com/](https://grubblyfarms.com/)

~~~
the8472
> Chickens are an obvious option

Chicken are fed with soybeans. What would you feed ants so you can feed them
to chicken in turn that would be more efficient?

The fish aspect seems more reasonable, if we can't figure out how to feed
farmed fish with plant products.

~~~
tantalor
> What would you feed ants...?

Garbage.

 _What do they eat? Only the highest quality pre-consumer food waste will do.
Rather than using animal by-products, we link up with juice bars, bakeries,
breweries, and the likes to divert their food waste. While a mushy banana may
not seem appetizing to you, our grubs would happily do the honors._

[https://grubblyfarms.com/pages/faq](https://grubblyfarms.com/pages/faq)

~~~
the8472
And it's not possible to feed it to the chicken directly or mixing it into
their soy feed?

~~~
ianamartin
It totally is. Chickens will happily eat anything. Especially other chickens.

I grew up on a chicken and sheep farm. Between letting the chickens roam the
vegetable part of the farm area and eat bugs (bonus: we didn't need
pesticides) and feeding them our organic food waste, we basically spent
nothing on chicken feed. I found out about chickens being zealous cannibals
accidentally when I was a kid taking the trash out to feed them. We'd had
fried chicken for dinner, and I wasn't thinking about it and just threw all
the bones into the feeder like I always did with the food trash. They went
berserk over those chicken bones. They absolutely loved them. It was a shark-
style feeding frenzy. I was weirded out by that for a while.

It was a pretty small operation though. OP's idea for chickens might make
sense in a factory farm situation where there's no space to let them roam for
bugs. And maybe the logistics of getting them fresh trash don't make a ton of
sense.

~~~
hn23
I would say it is not allowed to feed them trash when you want to sell their
flesh:)

~~~
ianamartin
Fresh trash really isn't problematic. It was the food scraps we just finished
eating and we would feed it to them as soon as we got done with dinner. It
didn't sit around in a bin for days to rot or anything. But yeah, if we had
been a regulated operation that probably wouldn't have been okay.

We used the chickens for eggs mostly and meat when they stopped laying. We
used the sheep for meat every spring. We would trade with the neighbors in
exchange for helping farm our vegetable crops or fresh milk from the small-ish
dairy farm down the road. It wasn't the kind of thing where we were selling to
a grocery conglomerate or anything.

Probably none of our farming practices would have been acceptable at scale.
But that wasn't our point. It was mostly just for our family. Honestly, not
the worst way to grow up. You farm your own food and slaughter your own meat.
You learn a certain respect and appreciation for what sustains you.

But anyway, yeah, I don't know what the rules are if you're selling your
livestock. Feeding them trash probably isn't allowed, even though it's
efficient.

------
NickM
So it's nice to think that maybe this could work to turn food waste back into
edible protein, but is this actually more efficient than just composting the
waste and using it to grow crops? Sure, maybe this is a good source of
protein, but so are, say, beans, right?

I would hazard a guess that for most western cultures, it's probably easier to
convince people to replace meat with plant-based food than it is to replace
meat with bugs. So if we want insect-based foods to take off, I feel like
there's got to be some fundamental advantage over just switching to a
vegetarian diet. Maybe that advantage exists; I just don't know what it might
be.

~~~
stronglikedan
> _but so are, say, beans, right?_

Beans (and other non-animal) proteins are not "complete", meaning they lack
certain things that the human body needs to be healthy.

Edit: For those saying it's untrue, the research has been done to prove it. Of
course, you're free to deny any research and reach your own conclusions, but
that doesn't make it untrue.

Edit 2: I just stated a fact in answer to a question. I did not provide any
context, such as individual eating habits, beyond what was implied by the
question. The _fact_ is that bean proteins are not _as good_ for us as animal
proteins when compared directly.

~~~
VBprogrammer
That's not true, at least for humans.

On a related note, I came across Nixtamalization recently. It's one of those
stories reminiscent how the Royal Navy managed to 'forget' the cure for
scurvy. It had been practiced for thousands of years in South America but when
the western countries discovered maize they didn't understand why. Turns out
it's responsible for making maize a complete protein source.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nixtamalization](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nixtamalization)

------
neuronflux
Reminds me of the movie Snowpiercer[1]. The "protein blocks" served to the
population are made from ground-up cockroaches.

The setting is on a train during an ice-age so they really need to make use of
the space efficiently. They don't really go into what the cockroaches eat, I
can only assume waste from the population.

1\.
[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1706620/](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1706620/)

~~~
wyldfire
IIRC the way it's presented in the film was as a horrifying surprise -- or
perhaps as an element of the subjugation/cruelty that the movie focused on.
But when I watched it all I could think of was, "Uh, yeah, that's actually the
kinda thing that we're considering now."

~~~
YeGoblynQueenne
In Snowpiercer, it was only the poor inhabitants of the last coaches that were
fed insect protein bars. The rich and powerful in the first coaches ate fillet
mignon and the like.

My guess is that is how things would play out with insects as food for humans
in the real world, too. The poor will have to eat grubs and crickets "for the
environment" while the rich continue to eat as and what they please.

This is my guess based on my experience of how food works in the UK. If you
can afford it, you can eat fresh fruit and vegetables, or the best cuts of
meat. If you can't, then tough: it's kebabs, sliced bread that's high in trans
fats, sugars and salts, and at best tinned veg and fruit, for you.

~~~
IdiocyInAction
> If you can afford it, you can eat fresh fruit and vegetables, or the best
> cuts of meat. If you can't, then tough: it's kebabs, sliced bread that's
> high in trans fats, sugars and salts, and at best tinned veg and fruit, for
> you.

What? In continental Europe vegetables, fresh or tinned, are by far the
cheapest option. Meat is always expensive.

------
jagger27
I just checked the label of my freshwater guppies' favourite food: sure
enough, it's pure fly larvae. It was so shocking to me how voracious they were
for the tiny grains of ground larvae compared to the typical fish/grain meal
flake food. It was touched on in the article: it's not very cheap yet. But
it's abundantly clear to me that this type of highly efficient nutrient
transfer is going to change the agricultural food chain forever.

~~~
ChuckMcM
Suggests that it could be an important component of aquaculture.

~~~
ifoundthetao
It is. And it's an excellent input for aquaponics too. I used to do this about
10 years ago for a while. It was fun.

I learned a lot, and the peppers were delicious.

------
Y_Y
Not even Bear Grylls wants to eat something called a "maggot". They're going
to need some serious rebranding upfront.

~~~
benj111
Grubs?

Fly calves?

SFMHPP? (Soldier Fly Maggot High Protein Powder)

I suspect some variation of the latter is how this will get into the food
chain. Identifiable insects get in the news, but it'll probably be as an
additive where it sees most use. After all what percentage of chicken is sold
as actual whole pieces of chicken rather than reformed, breaded, sauced,
otherwise processed meat?

~~~
TopRattata
> Fly calves?

Micro-veal! Bam, now it's fancy.

~~~
jacobedawson
Wee-veal?

~~~
benj111
I think you're misunderstanding what we're trying to do here. We're trying to
get _away_ from the insectiness, not charge towards it.... Otherwise it would
obviously be beeftle.... Until the horse fly meat scandal.

------
stcredzero
True story. (Long but also topical, so just bear with it.) I had become
fascinated with a traditional band from the region of Asturias on the northern
coast of Spain, named _Llan de Cubel_. I liked a lot of their tunes, but there
was this rousing song of theirs I liked, though I never knew what it was
about. A few years after I discovered them, I got to meet them at the Lake
Eden Arts Festival, where they finally explained the song. It turns out the
song was about this kind of soft, moldy, strongly flavored cheese (somewhat
like Gorgonzola) made in households in Asturias. Often, flies would land on
the cheese and lay their eggs. However, the flavor of the cheese is so strong,
the maggots would just end up tasting just like the cheese, so many of the
locals would simply eat the maggots for the protein.

(If you like British Isles trad music and are curious to check out _Llan de
Cubel,_ start with the tune set _San Roque._ )

~~~
twic
See also:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casu_marzu](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casu_marzu)

------
makerofspoons
I'm a big fan of cricket flour, and I look forward to seeing more options like
it on the market. It looks like they are on their way to producing some, I
wonder what the barrier to doing so is if they are committed to getting over
the 'ick' factor.

~~~
unixhero
What do you use the cricket flour for?

~~~
makerofspoons
Mostly I include it in my protein shakes, but I also use it for baking.

~~~
unixhero
Cool! I have to try it.

------
mad_dog_shark
My brain is sold on the reasons for producing bugs to eat, but my stomach is
sadly queasy about it. Maybe if they ground them and made patties out of them
or something to get past the feeling of eating tiny bugs?

Does anyone have experience getting over this?

~~~
some-guy
I'm in the same boat as you. But maybe we aren't the target here--if we were
to feed this to our children from a very young age, maybe they wouldn't have
the same reaction as us.

When I saw a video of how sausages were made much later in my life, it didn't
have the same queasy feeling since I have eaten and enjoyed sausages from
childhood. My brain says that the way sausages are made is _far_ more
disgusting than the way these larvae are produced, but my stomach doesn't feel
the same way.

Let's help guide the next generation's stomachs in the right direction. In the
meantime, I'll see if I can get used to eating some kind of ground-up bug
meal.

------
omarhaneef
Prediction: we will evolve to find tasty what we formerly found disgusting.

Actually, I wonder why we find bugs disgusting (from an evolutionary
perspective). I mean, presumably they're "dirty", but isn't that why we
invented cooking?

~~~
Qwertystop
An evolutionary perspective is the wrong perspective; there exist plenty of
cultures where bugs are not considered disgusting.

~~~
benj111
Cochineal is generally acceptable in western cultures, so there are obviously
certain insects acceptable to otherwise non insect eating cultures.

[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cochineal](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cochineal)

~~~
Falling3
It's not acceptable in my experience. People are just ignorant to the fact
that this is an ingredient.

~~~
benj111
I think it occupies the same sort of place as factory farming and Turkey
Twizzlers. People know about it but prefer not to think about it. You don't
get the tabloids announcing the 'hidden insects in our food' either.

I suppose you could argue the acceptability of it? people get on with their
lives and diets though, it doesn't occupy the same space as eating maggots,
can we agree on that.

~~~
astura
Turkey Twizzlers?

~~~
benj111
Highly processed, contain just 34% turkey, rose to (in)fame on the back of
Jamie Oliver's series on school dinners in the UK.

[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey_Twizzlers](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey_Twizzlers)

------
carapace
Roach farms have been a thing for a decade or so now:
[https://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-c1-china-
cockroach-20131...](https://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-c1-china-
cockroach-20131015-dto-htmlstory.html)

------
smcg
Check out Rust Belt Riders, another business that is using black soldier fly
larvae for compost.
[https://www.rustbeltriders.com/](https://www.rustbeltriders.com/)

and they do use the flies as chicken/fish feed.

------
prando
I found this nifty video that explains the operation of such a facility in
Indonesia! Cool stuff!
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5M6u9ZX5ecE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5M6u9ZX5ecE)

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october_sky
I wonder if this could be useful for mars or moon colonies

------
lsniddy
whats with all this bug eating propaganda?

~~~
DanBC
We need protein to feed the world. Beef and lamb are environmentally horrific,
and for some people there are ethical problems too. Chicken is less harmful
for the environment (still pretty bad), but the ethical problems for most
forms of chicken (anything other than properly free range) are severe.

We could try plant based diets for everyone, and if done correctly that would
increase health, but it's possibly tricky to do.

Supplementing a plant based diet with entomophagy could feed the world at
considerably lower carbon footprint than current meat based diets.

------
forgotmypw3
Could someone paste the text, please?

------
winslow
If it's any vote of confidence, our bearded dragon finds them very tasty.

------
JabavuAdams
Gawd, I really don't want to click on that link without disabling images.

~~~
nickserv
There's nothing too gross. I was a bit hesitant but it's not the typical larva
with legs, eyes and mouthparts all over the place. They look a bit like rice.

------
ErotemeObelus
How much money do you want to bet that millionaires and over will elect to
opt-out of the bug cuisine? That means they want to make poor people eat bugs!
The only way this "program" could be fair is if both billionaires and joe
schmoe are both forced to eat bugs by law.

