The yellow mealworm as a novel source of protein.

By A. Ghaly, F. Alkoaik. 2009

201 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Problem statement: Yellow mealworms of different sizes (4.8-182.7 mg) were grown in a medium of wheat flour and brewer’s yeast (95:5 by weight) to evaluate their potential as a protein source. Approach: There was an initial adjustment period (3-9 days) observed during which the younger larvae (4.8-61.1 mg) grew slowly while the older ones (80.3-182.7 mg) lost weight. After this initial period, the younger larvae (4.8-122.1 mg) increased in weight while the older ones (139.6-182.7 mg) continued to lose weight as they entered the pupal stage. For efficient production of larvae, they should be harvested at a weight of 100-110 mg. The moisture issue in the medium presents an important management problem for commercial production. Results: A system in which eggs are separate from adults and hatched in separate chambers would alleviate the danger of losing the larval population due to microbial infection. The moisture, ash, protein and fat contents were 58.1-61.5, 1.8-2.2, 24.3-27.6 and 12.0-12.5%, respectively. Yellow mealworms seem to be a promising source of protein for human consumption with the required fat and essential amino acids. Further research into raising them on a variety of low quality substances/wastes such as saw dust, waste paper, corn starch and potato flour is recommended. Conclusion/Recommendations: The future research should also investigate the nutrition content of the medium (minerals, protein, fat, carbohydrates and vitamins) and the effect of environmental parameters (temperature, humidity, production of CO2 and heat) on protein yield and quality. This information will aid in the design of an economically viable large scale production system.

Subfields: Genetics, Insect Science, Molecular Biology

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/868f3e1d140d8513b777e5a23adb275d665abf8c

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Citations in the corpus

Mealworms for Food: A Water Footprint Perspective (2015, methodology): “The interest in insects comes from their very high efficiency in transforming phytomass into protein-rich animal biomass, their high fecundity, their very fast growth rates, and also their ability to absorb all the water they need from just their food [37,38,41].”
A Review of the Scientific Literature for Optimal Conditions for Mass Rearing Tenebrio molitor (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) (2018, unknown): “…Oonincx et al. 2015; Rho and Lee 2014, 2015; Tindwa et al. 2015; Urrejola et al. 2011; van Broekhoven et al. 2016 Protein source Beer yeast Gerber 1975; Ghaly and Alkoaik 2009; John et al. 1978; Lardies et al. 2014; Oonincx et al. 2010, 2015; Ramos-Elorduy et al. 1997; Tang et al. 2012; Tindwa…”
Nutritive potential and utilization of super worm (Zophobas morio ) meal in the diet of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus ) juvenile (2012, methodology): “Based on the study by Ghaly and Alkoaik (2009) who focused on meal worm, it was reported that it has been used for human consumption in their dietary nutrition due to the higher protein content and shorter production time before harvesting; were the crucial factor considered as a FM replacement as…”
Larvae of mealworm (Tenebrio molitor L.) as European novel food (2013, background): “And it is the adult larvae that are used as human food in some parts of the world [14,15].”
Review on the use of insects in the diet of farmed fish: Past and future (2015, background): “, 2014), but it is poor n minerals such as calcium and phosphorus (Ghaly and Alkoaik, 2009).”