Black soldier flies mating
The Black Soldier Fly, Hermetia illucens, was once only found in South America, but today is quite ubiqutous. The United States Spain, Portugal, southern France, Italy, Croatia, Malta, the Canary Islands, Switzerland, the Black Sea coast of Russia... Yes, and right here in Southern Africa.
Adult females can lay more that 600 eggs at a time. The larvae that emerge can grow to 2,5 cm. That's about an inch if you don't speak metric.
These larvae are basically maggots. Toss them rotting food or manure and they will munch away, converting that into something edible by other creatures. So they're quite useful.
But back in the European Union – specifically, Ghent University in Belgium – scientists are taking the larvae, soaking them in water, then tossing them into the blender.
I'm sure you can picture what maggots in a blender look like. But wait, there's more!
They then stick the blended maggots into a centrifuge and use it to separate out fat, which they are calling "insect butter".
They then use this goop as a substitute for real butter in waffles and cakes and biscuits.
Let me quote the Reuters report: "According to the researchers, consumers notice no difference when a quarter of the milk butter in a cake is replaced with larva fat. However, they report an unusual taste when it gets to fifty-fifty and say they would not want to buy the cake."
You think?
