Key points: High in protein relative to animal meat. High in essential amino acids Lysine, and muscle building leucine, isoleucine and valine. High in essential minerals, except calcium. Low in essential amino acids Tryptophan and Methionine. Proportionally higher in fat than animal meats, with a similar fat make up. A source of dietary fibre. Low in carbohydrates. Mealworms are more nutritious compared to beef, and very similar in nutrition to soybean. This article will look at the macro- and micro- nutritional breakdown of mealworms. Mealworms are a great animal fe ..read more

Mealworms are a popular food for many pet reptiles and birds, and they are easy to raise at home Before we tell you how to farm mealworms here is a quick overview about their lifecycle.  Lifecycle Mealworms, also known as Tenebrio molitor, are the larvae of the darkling beetle. They go through a complete metamorphosis, meaning they have four distinct stages in their life cycle: egg, larva (mealworm), pupa, and adult (We have written a in-depth blog, check it out for more info). The eggs hatch into larvae, which are small, white, worm-like creatures. The larvae grow and molt ..read more

Mealworms can eat just about anything: fruit, vegetables, dry grains, food waste - even cardboard and plastic! But to get the most nutrition for your pet, you probably want to avoid the all-plastic diet. Investigations into mealworm diet. Many studies have looked at how diet affects mealworm growth and survival, showing that the type of food is less important than the nutrients they get.  A study on the effect of food types found that, when nutritional needs are met, diet has no major effect on insect performance, productivity or larval growth, with only slight (less than 1 mg) changes i ..read more

Insects play many roles in nature. They pollinate flowers, make food, spread diseases, destroy crops, condition soil, and tons of other things. They're estimated to make up 90% of all animals on the planet, so it makes sense that we're looking to them for innovative solutions to global problems. This article will exhibit some promising solutions of the future that can derive from insects.   1) They are a sustainable food source They may not look it, but insects are a very nutritious food source. Commonly eaten species like Mealworms, Crickets and Beetles contain similar amounts of pr ..read more

  This blog will explore the impact of the soy boom - a large explosion in demand for soybeans due to their use as cheap protein-dense animal feed. It will explore the environmental cost of soy production on forests; look at the effect on water and soil quality; and investigate the impact on the human population. Finally, we will explore the options that are being considered to reduce the harm being caused. Called the ‘‘king of beans’’ by many, soybean is a crop grown for its high protein, vitamin and mineral content, versatility and ability to grow in many climates. Soy is pop ..read more

Mealworms as part of a fish’s diet This blog will be looking at multi factorial benefits of including homegrown mealworms to your fishes diet. A brief discussion on feeding mealworms to pond, tropical and saltwater fish will finalize this blog. It is well established in the aquarist community to include insects in the diets of the fish they keep, with bloodworm, daphnia and other livefoods commonplace. These have been used for fish whether that be dried frozen or live, and for good reason, many of the fish that are popular to keep today are carnivorous or omnivorous so giving them a diet resem ..read more

Insects. Some see them as pests, but some are claiming them as a resource of the future. This blog will provide a view of how insects could be the solution to our future crises.   Why are insects a critical resource for our future…? Insects will be important in the fight against hunger and climate change. They use much fewer resources than farm animals to produce the same amount of protein and can be raised on food waste, making them very cost-effective. Livestock like cows and pigs need excessive amounts of land and food for the amount of protein they can offer. Animal farming emits 18 ..read more

Fertilisers are the key to growing large and healthy plants. There are two categories: chemical and organic fertilisers. Chemical fertilisers are man-made mixes of the main nutrients needed for plant development. Organic fertilisers are natural by-products of farming, like manure or composted plant waste, containing nutrients and beneficial microorganisms.   Chicken manure is one of the most popular organic fertilisers in use, but an emerging organic fertiliser is the waste product of insect farming, frass. Frass has all the nutrients needed by plants, but also an extra compound, ch ..read more

Livestock eat a lot of food... 36% of the calories of the world's crops are being used to feed them. In the UK, livestock eat half of all wheat grown - enough to make 11 billion loaves of bread a year!  According to the WWF, 85% of British farmland is used for grazing, or for growing crops for animals. These crops make up over 80% of the diets of pigs and chickens. Due to foot-and-mouth era feeding regulations, pigs cannot be fed on food waste. Feeding sterilised waste to pigs allows it to be processed sustainably, instead of going to landfill and decomposing into greenhouse gases. O ..read more

Do Chickens need toys? This blog will discuss how enrichment for your chickens translates to toys for your chickens, the benefits different toys can have for your backyard flock and give you some ideas on how to enrich your chickens lives with toys and games to make for happier, even healthier hens. So what is enrichment? There is many different types of enrichment but for the purpose of this blog It will be in reference to environmental enrichment for the psychological benefits it can have on a flock of chickens. Environmental Enrichment  is defined as the improvement of the environment ..read more