Technical handbook of domestication and production of Diptera Black Soldier Fly (BSF), Hermetia illucens, Stratiomyidae

This technical book aims to publish required key information for domestication and production of the insect Hermetia illucens. Also known as « Black Soldier Fly » (BSF), this cosmopolitan dipteran, belonging to the family of Stratiomyidae, is considered as non-pest. Being saprophagous at the larval stage, it is able to bio degrade various organic wastes. For years, recycling of domestic or agricultural wastes has been a continual concern and the potential use of BSF larvae in this field already raised the interest of many researchers. However, the recent awareness of the scarcity of food resources for livestock has led French and Indonesian researchers to consider BSF as a new animal food resource. This is the core of the Bioconversion Project held in Indonesia which -through the construction of an experimental pilotallowed the mass production of this insect. This book explains how to produce BSF adults, eggs and larvae for animal –feeding, with a particular emphasis on fishes. Besides methods of production of BSF, this technical handbook summarizes the successive steps of the project in order to specify the potentialities and limits of using BSF larvae for feeding fishes in tropical aquaculture. A thorough economic analysis stresses both strong and weak points of the pilot and provides elements of decision making for producers. BSF productions were mostly obtained while using Palm Kernel Meal (PKM) as a substrate. However, other substrates have been experimented at different scales to consider alternative productions.