adriannetraub

Here are a few snapshots of what our project looked like. The 55-gallon drum, long plastic container, and square container designs were easily fit into unused greenhouse space. However, the designs were not large enough to produce our desired quantity of larvae. There were two main problems with the bins. Firstly, the liquid did not drain out well, creating a thick sludge in the bottom that was difficult to remove and had a mild odor. Secondly, many larva did not crawl out the ramps. We changed the angle and placement, but continued to have many larvae pupate inside the bin. I would recommend using a variation on these systems for small scale black soldier fly larvae production. For those looking to feed a few chickens or fish, it would work great. I think the 55-gallon drum has the most potential, the ramp needs to cover the entire bottom of the drum so food waste and larvae are not trapped underneath.