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A team from Macquarie University in Australia has engineered flies to tackle the global waste crisis. These modified black soldier flies can consume various organic waste, from food scraps to industrial byproducts.
A team from Macquarie University in Australia has engineered flies to tackle the global waste crisis. These modified black soldier flies can consume various organic waste, from food scraps to industrial byproducts.
According to a new paper in Communications Biology, the flies could also produce valuable substances like lubricants, biofuels, and high-quality animal feed.
Additionally, reducing organic waste in landfills could significantly lower methane emissions, helping combat climate change. This research has the potential to revolutionize waste management and promote a more sustainable future.
The study authors highlighted that managing organic waste is a major global challenge, with 40–70% of it ending up in landfills. In these conditions, waste decomposes anaerobically, producing methane, a greenhouse gas 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide.
The solid waste sector is responsible for about 5% of global CO2-equivalent emissions, mainly due to methane from landfills. Dr. Kate Tepper, the study’s lead author, warned of a looming climate disaster and emphasized the urgent need to eliminate landfill methane.
Maselko pointed out that insects represent a new frontier in waste management, given the 1 billion metric tons of food waste generated annually.
Black soldier flies, present on every continent except Antarctica, can consume waste more efficiently than microbes. Their larvae, which can eat twice their body weight daily, are already used as animal feed and offer a faster waste disposal solution.
