Black Soldier Flies: Troops that Protect the Earth

Image source: http://www.coffsgardenclub.com/2017/07/black-soldier-fly-hermetia-illucens.html

Did you know that an average human generates about two kilograms of waste per day? Yes, it’s true!

By waste, I mean the things that you and I throw away, like sheets of paper, plastic packaging, leftover food, and so much more. But waste never really goes ‘away’. Anything that goes ‘away’ actually just goes somewhere else. So how do we dispose of things without creating too much waste

You have heard of Guardians of the Galaxy. Have you heard of the guardians of the Earth? 

There’s a method of reducing food waste, which I’m sure will amaze you. My cousin, Aparna Sundar, who I recently met, has been experimenting with different eco-friendly recipes and methods. This is how she gets rid of her household’s food waste without adding to the amount of garbage on our planet.

The first step in this process is refrigerating. Once Aparna eats a meal, instead of throwing them away, she mixes the food scraps in a large box. She then puts the box in a freezer or refrigerator. After about a week, once the food waste has broken down sufficiently, she takes it to a farm for composting. 

This farm harvests an insect that plays a critical role in this process: the black soldier fly. These flies’ larvae feed only on manure, garbage and rotting vegetable matter. They eat much more as larvae than at any other stage, and their hunger is insatiable. 

Image source: https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Black-Soldier-Fly-Larvae-Hermetia-Illucens_50020545874.html

After approximately 14 days of feeding on the compost, they reach their pupa stage. This lasts for two weeks.

Finally, the black soldier flies become adults. They then die and decompose quickly, acting as natural fertiliser. In this way, black soldier flies reduce the amount of waste on the earth and even when they die, they continue being valuable to the environment.

This method of composting is just one way of giving back to nature. There are many more, which I hope to research soon. If we don’t start disposing of our waste in the right way, the earth will soon become a giant landfill.