A Couple Decomposes 3kg of Food Waste... Found a 'Natural Food Waste Processor'

Food Waste-Eating 'America Dong-aedeungae' Larvae
One Pair Can Process 2-3kg... Byproducts Used as Fertilizer

Chungnam Province has started research to mass-produce larvae of the 'American black soldier fly' that consume food waste.

According to the Industrial Insect Research Institute of the Provincial Agricultural Research and Extension Services on the 16th, the black soldier fly is a holometabolous insect of the order Diptera that undergoes complete metamorphosis from egg to larva, pupa, and adult.

The black soldier fly is not classified as a pest. It is omnivorous and inhabits organic matter, and the adult fly does not regurgitate after feeding on food (moisture), so it does not transmit diseases and does not enter indoor areas lacking light.

In particular, the larvae of the black soldier fly have strong digestive power and consume and decompose food waste and livestock manure. The byproduct of decomposition, frass, is known to be usable as a fertilizer raw material, demonstrating excellent environmental purification effects.

The amount of organic waste food consumed and decomposed by black soldier fly larvae during the 15 days before pupation is 2 to 3 grams.

Considering that one female adult black soldier fly lays 1,000 eggs, a pair of black soldier flies can process 2 to 3 kilograms of food waste.

It is reported that when 5,000 black soldier fly larvae are introduced to 7 kilograms of food waste, the volume of the food waste decreases by 58% and the weight by about 30% within 3 to 5 days.

Moreover, the pupae of the black soldier fly contain 42% protein and 35% fat, making them suitable for processing into feed ingredients or additives for livestock and fish. In particular, the larval oil contains 20 to 30% lauric acid, which is known to help improve pig productivity.

In fact, domestic insect feed companies produce and sell pet food, nutritional supplements, and layer feed using black soldier fly larvae and pupae.

There are 223 black soldier fly larva farms in Korea, with 40 farms (18%) located in Chungnam. However, Chungnam's production value is 310 million won, accounting for only 2.8% of the national total of 10.9 billion won.

The limited production is due to odor complaints caused by the food waste consumed by the black soldier flies.

To solve this problem, the Agricultural Insect Research Institute has been conducting research since last year to develop alternative feed sources and find mass-rearing environments for the American black soldier fly.

They identified the ratio and density of agricultural byproducts such as rice cake, noodles, and bread byproducts that reduce odor while enhancing growth.

Additionally, they developed growth-promoting additives for black soldier fly larvae.

This year, they are developing technology to reduce odor and cut farm management costs by using coffee grounds as a moisture controller instead of sawdust.

Next year, they plan to jointly promote and develop environmental improvement research for mass rearing with private companies and distribute the technology to local farms.