Insect farming is surprisingly common.
You may not have realized but insect farming isn't something new. We have all tasted honey, touched a silk cloth, or even used red lipstick. What do all these products have in common? They are derived from the cultivation of insects!
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Beekeeping (or also known as apiculture), is our way of cultivating honey. From as far back as 9,000 years ago in North Africa, there has been records of humans maintaining beehives and obtaining honey from them. Other than honey, bees produce beeswax, flower pollen, bee pollen and royal jelly, which are collected by beekeepers. In addition, bees are top pollinators for crops like fruit trees. Bees do not seem as scary as other insects as we have been exposed/learnt about them when we were young.
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Silkworm farming (or also known as sericulture), is the cultivation of silkworm to produce silk. Silk was believed to have first been produced in China, about 12,000 years ago.
Silkworms grow as they feed on mulberry leaves, and after their fourth molt, they stop feeding and spin silken cocoons to go into the pupa stage. Pupae are collected and immersed in hot water to collect the silk, used for making clothing. The killed pupae is either used for human or animal consumption, depending on the culture of each country.
Silkworms grow as they feed on mulberry leaves, and after their fourth molt, they stop feeding and spin silken cocoons to go into the pupa stage. Pupae are collected and immersed in hot water to collect the silk, used for making clothing. The killed pupae is either used for human or animal consumption, depending on the culture of each country.
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If you've used red lipstick or once drank a red drink from Starbucks, you most likely have ingested carmine dye. Carmine dye is produced by a type of scale insect - Cochineal. These little insects are native to tropical and subtropical South and North America. They feed on cacti and are commonly found on the pads of prickly pear cacti. Carminic acid produced by these little ones can be extracted from its body and eggs, then mixed with aluminium or calcium salts to make carmine dye.
If you see E120 as a colorant in your food, or Lipstick Natural Red 4 coloration, be greatful to the Cochineal.
If you see E120 as a colorant in your food, or Lipstick Natural Red 4 coloration, be greatful to the Cochineal.
They are a highly sustainable source of protein.
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Data from Aketta Cricket Farming has also shown that insects are way more sustainable than farming traditional livestock like cattle.
Imagine the reduction of deforestation, it is said that up to 70% of the Amazonian rain forests have been cleared to provide land for cattle farming, and the feed that is required to sustain these cows. (Sources: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, Hannah Ritchie and Max Roser 2020, UN FAO) |
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They have a highly efficient protein yield.
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According to a study done, Black Soldier Fly Larvae produced A LOT more proteins, using the same land size as compared to other animals commonly farmed.
As seen in the diagram on the right, the number of pounds of protein produced by Black Soldier Fly per acre per year, accounting for land used to raise feed for animal sources, is a staggering 3000X more than cattle. (Source: Enviroflight) |
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