Black Soldier Fly farming is presently the most widespread form of insect farming in the world. The Black Soldier Fly is ideally suited for food production due to its rapid production cycle and high concentration of protein. The high percentage of protein in the larvae makes them an ideal source of food for a wide variety of animals.

During the breeding phase, also referred to as the hatchery phase, the eggs deposited by adult Black Soldier Flies are placed in vertically racked containers filled with compost consisting of residual waste streams such as organic food waste. Under completely controlled climate conditions, the eggs hatch very quickly into tiny Black Soldier Fly larvae.

During the production phase, temperature, humidity, and food supply are carefully controlled and optimised for growth of the larvae, which reach their maximum body mass in only 6 days.  During this period, the larvae rapidly consume nutrients from the organic waste in order to prepare themselves for the following stage of their life as an adult fly.

When they are ready to be harvested, the larvae consist for 40% to 65% of protein and other essential nutrients for chicken and animals

Sustainability

Insect farming is, in principle, much more efficient and sustainable than the farming of cattle, pigs, and poultry. Insects are 4 to 10 times more efficient in converting nutrients into body mass. In addition, insect larvae feed on a wider range of residual waste streams that are efficiently converted into protein-rich body mass.

Finally, insect farming requires much less space and water, and the emission of greenhouse gases also appears to be lower. In short, an insect farming business offers a sustainable solution for the growing global demand for protein.

DON’T BE LEFT OUT

Kenyan agripreneurs are flying high with black soldier flies

By farming black soldier flies, women and youth agripreneurs in Kenya are finding a newer, cheaper and environmentally clean way of producing much-needed protein for livestock and fish feed.

Lack of access to affordable protein sources for farmed pigs, chickens and fish in Kenya can deter women and youth farmers from starting a small livestock venture, with both groups less likely to have access to the required capital. Yet, their involvement in agriculture is widely recognised as critical to Kenya’s economic development.

Traditionally, Kenyan farmers use fishmeal and soybean as protein sources for their animals, but both can be problematic for smallholder communities. Kenya does not produce high quantities of soybean, and limited local supply translates to expensive import taxes, which often push the commodity out of the reach of small-scale operations. Likewise, fishmeal is becoming a less reliable protein source due to greater market competition, overfishing and traders often adulterating supplies with sand to increase profit margins.

Two production models show insects could provide a reliable, sustainable, safe, and cost-effective source of protein for small-scale livestock and fish farming enterprises.  

Black soldier flies provide the opportunity for smallholder farmers to shift towards a more reliable, profitable and ultimately more sustainable source of protein for their animals.

This profitable venture must e done in a controlled environment providing necessary temperatures for the flies which is a greenhouse. The size of the greenhouse will depend on the scale of the agripreneurs.