Abstract:
It is estimated that by the year 2050, the world population will reach 9 billion. With the current global food insecurity, there is likelihood that the situation may worsen. The poster presentation illustrates the simple methods that have been used on campus for the rearing of crickets (Acheta domesticus) and the black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) for food and feed, as a way of contributing towards food security. Crickets from the wild were caught and fed on fresh kales, chicken mash and clean water in 100ml plastic buckets for one month. Attraction of adult BSF to lay eggs was done by use of rotting food collected from the campus restaurant. The collected crickets laid eggs that have hatched to produce a population of about a million while the eggs of BSF hatched, the larva were fed on different food types and the resultant prepupa transferred to a rearing net cage in containers containing pupation media for emergence. Crickets were processed into human food and livestock feed whereas Black soldier fly were used as poultry and fish feed. There is a lot of potential in the rearing of these insects a way of boosting food security and generating income.
