A Texas A&M University entomologist says insects can be much more efficient and environmentally friendly sources of food for livestock than traditional feed.Climate change is forcing everyone to adapt to new ways of living, whether that's reconsidering transportation, where we live and even what we eat. Researchers at Texas A&M University are even helping the livestock industry rethink what it feeds to animals.
Jeffrey Tomberlin is a professor of entomology, and is leading collaborative research on the sustainability of insect farming for Texas A&M AgriLife Research.
He says some insects, including the black soldier fly, have the potential to be a much more environmentally friendly source of food for livestock, instead of traditional feed like grain.
One reason is that black soldier fly larvae are good at converting what they eat into meat on their bones, so to speak, for whatever consumes them later. Other animals aren't as efficient, which means they have to take in much more food in order to get the same amount of "meat" at the end. That makes the larvae good, low-maintenance, high-energy feed for livestock.
"With insects, it's a two-to-one [biomass] conversion rate, so it's highly efficient," he said.
Also, they have short lifecycles. So, instead of a farmer waiting to grow a grain crop, and harvesting that crop each year, "crops" of insects can be harvested almost daily. And that food is more readily available to cattle and other livestock producers, Tomberlin said.
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