This Article Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 0734242X09103838v1 27/6/603    most recent References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Diener, S. Articles by Tockner, K. PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Diener, S. Articles by Tockner, K. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Conversion of organic material by black soldier fly larvae: establishing optimal feeding rates

Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Dübendorf, Switzerland, Stefan.Diener{at}eawag.ch

Christian Zurbrügg

Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Dübendorf, Switzerland

Klement Tockner

Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Dübendorf, Switzerland

Larvae of the black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens (Diptera: Stratiomyidae), are voracious feeders of organic material and may thus be used in simple engineered systems to reduce organic waste in low- and middle-income countries. Controlled feeding experiments with standard fodder were conducted to assess the optimum amount of organic waste to be added to a CORS system (Conversion of Organic Refuse by Saprophages). A daily feeding rate of 100 mg chicken feed (60% moisture content) per larva resulted in an optimum trade-off between material reduction efficiency (41.8%, SE 0.61) and biomass production (prepupal dry weight: 48.0 mg, SE 2.0). Applied to market waste and human faeces, this corresponds to a potential daily feeding capacity of 3—5 kg/m² and 6.5 kg/m², respectively. In addition, H. illucens prepupae quality was assessed to determine their suitability to substitute fishmeal in animal feed production. The chitin-corrected crude protein content ranged from 28.2 to 42.5%, depending on the amount of food provided to the larvae. Based on our study, a waste processing unit could yield a daily prepupal biomass of 145 g (dry mass) per m². We conclude that larvae of the black soldier fly are potentially capable of converting large amounts of organic waste into protein-rich biomass to substitute fishmeal, thereby contributing to sustainable aquaculture.

Key Words: Hermetia illucens • larval development • organic waste treatment • conversion of organic refuse by saprophages (CORS) • aquaculture • protein production

This version was published on September 1, 2009

Waste Management & Research, Vol. 27, No. 6, 603-610 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/0734242X09103838


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?