Recycling biological waste using the fly Hermetia illucens, environmental risks and biosafety for Russia

Abstract

The processing of biowaste by fly larvae Hermetia illucens is a unique technology for recycling products of human life. Fly larvae grown from biological waste can be a suitable raw material in animal feed production. During the analysis of references it was found that H. illucens is not a pest, so cultivation of this plant species does not require increased precautions. This species is not classified as potentially invasive for Russia and is not listed as a quarantine species. This insect currently has an almost cosmopolitan distribution (except in cold regions) and no significant adverse environmental impacts have been identified for it. The production of H. illucens larvae has been found to have much less environmental impact (e.g., greenhouse gas emissions) than production of other protein feeds of animal origin. The production of H. illucens larvae may serve the purposes of sustainable development of the Russian agroindustrial complex. The industrial cultivation of H. illucens requires compliance with generally accepted safety measures to prevent people from swallowing the eggs of this insect.