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Short description
For everyone: lowcost insect-farms against hunger.
Which problem do I/we aim to solve ‐ and why?
Through the opportunity of making an individual insect farm available for every household, we want to stop malnutrition in Southern African countries. The insect farms are designed in a way that every household can construct it itself with little effort and at low costs. This rules out the exclusiveness of this idea to only wealthy households. Insects consist of many important nutrients and proteins that people are lacking due to an unbalanced diet. With these insects the usual meals shall be enriched and the requirements for micronutrients shall be covered. Since insects are quite undemanding in breeding and barely need any feed, they save resources and are also very economical.
My/Our idea for a solution
As our insect farms are adapted to the growth cycle of the soldier flies and promote their life cycle, including mating and hatching, we focus on the dissemination of know-how rather than on the farm itself. Through local workshops people shall be explained the system of these farms and suggestions shall be given on how to build such a farm for themselves. For this, materials which are very cost-efficiently and easily available shall be used. Simple tools will be needed. First, team members will conduct on-site workshops. To create a sustainable system, people who would like to pass on the knowledge to others, should be selected on site. Thus, a sustainable system may for example be created by itself through the opportunity of selling manuals or farms. The securement of a sustainable distribution must be decided in agreement with the local people.
Why is my/our solution an innovative idea and tackles the challenge from a new
perspective
Although much is already written about insects as food, the approach of making the farms available to everyone is novel. The idea is very simple to implement and does not require big starting capital. Through a cycle in the breeding an indefinitely continuous supply can be provided.
How is my/our idea feasible?
The implementation starts with the presentation of the insect farm on site and with the workshops on how to build them. The farm itself consists mainly of two separate chambers – in one the flies mate, in the other the larvae grow. This could be simulated in a rain barrel or two canisters lying on top of each other. The chambers are solely connected by small holes through which the fly eggs fall. For this purpose entrances and exits are built by cut up bottles.
Which methods and channels do I/we want to utilise?
The method of implementation will be workshops. For a sustainable perpetuation of the idea, simple instructions will be brought along and spread. The farms themselves shall be created from barrels, canisters etc. These materials are selected locally.
What’s my/our expected outcome and improvement?
As a result, we expect an improvement in the supply of nutrients and thus an improvement of the quality and quantity of the available foodstuff. The result will be measurable through a “before and after comparison” of the meals.
What's my/our budget and which partners I/we would expect to be valuable
The development of the farms in Germany and the starting materials will cost about 1,500 €. The travel expenses for four people to Zimbabwe amount to 2.800 €. This may be taken as a reference value for further on-site implementations.
| Team: | Alexander Appel |