A product made from black soldier fly larvae has been turned into a high-protein supplement for chickens and the producers also have their sights set on a commercially viable product for the wider livestock industry.
A regular commute past pig farm manure triggered an idea for Nuriootpa-based engineers Chris and Jeannine Malcolm to workshop ideas to return nutrients back to farms and potentially help improve livestock feed sustainability.
"We researched and found out, larvae enjoyed consuming this type of organic material and countries such as Indonesia and Kenya were using it to manage animal waste," Mrs Malcolm said.
"But insects are considered animals, so feeding manure to livestock is not allowed in Australia.
"But, there is certainly interest surrounding the security of feed ingredients for livestock, so producers do not have to rely on imported ingredients which are susceptible to commodity prices."
Mrs Malcolm believed there was an opportunity to provide national "insurance" for livestock feed and pivoted the idea to using food waste to turn fly eggs into larvae for supplement production.
"We commenced trials using brewery mash and grape marc, and food waste from restaurants in the Barossa Valley to feed the larvae," she said.
"We had about six regular pickups and the chefs were really supportive. They wanted to know where their food waste was going."
So, food trimmings and herbs which could not be used in the kitchen ended up becoming about 250 kilograms of waste a week for larvae production.
A crusher turns the food waste into a mash to feed the larvae and weekly visits to farm gates at Virginia has resulted in collecting tonnes of potatoes, watermelons and other food waste.
"By doing this, we are hoping to create more value from the food waste," Mrs Malcolm said.
The Malcolm's sourced their initial black soldier fly stock online and purpose built an air-conditioned, climate controlled room to breed flies and grow larvae.
An insulator box is where the flies create the larvae which is turned into chicken pellets and a ground supplement, as an additive for livestock and aquaculture feed.
The process involves eggs being removed from wooden traps and scraped onto mesh, and after about four days, the eggs hatch into larvae, which grows into a quality, high protein source.
The larvae is harvested at its peak nutrition period, just before the pupa stage.
About 98 per cent is harvested, while 2pc is left to replace breeding stock.
Every gram of larvae is about 20,000 eggs and then as the larvae changes from blonde to a coffee colour, it means it is maturing and getting ready for pupation.
The larvae is harvested at its peak protein and fat levels.
"This is when the maximum nutrition value, it is about 40 per cent protein," Ms Malcolm said.
"The larvae store as much fat and protein into its system as possible and then eventually create a pupa shell while pupating into becoming a fly."
For every kilogram of larvae, about four kilograms of food are consumed, which means about a tonne of food waste a month, is producing 200kg of larvae a month.
"It is still in the pilot scale and it is very labour intensive. So, we are in the process of searching for equipment to scale-up and make it commercially viable," Mrs Malcolm said.
The Malcolm's believed the interest in the protein source comes from its title of being the fastest growing protein and its ability to potentially reduce worming frequency and improve overall gut health in non-ruminant animals.
The black soldier fly has become a widely used insect in animal feed research because of its high nutritional value and cost effectiveness.
"It is a tiny grub but we are finding it has a lot of benefits," Mrs Malcolm said.
"For chickens, the dehydrated larvae sticks can help improve egg shell strength and feather growth after shedding."
Vanessa Binks
I am the Markets Editor and journalist at the Stock Journal. I am based at Nuriootpa in SA's lower north.
I am the Markets Editor and journalist at the Stock Journal. I am based at Nuriootpa in SA's lower north.
