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A Multidisciplinary Approach for the Development of a Supply Chain in Biomass Conversion of Agrifood Waste Mediated by Larvae of Hermetia illucens L.: From Rearing to By-Product Exploitation

TitoloA Multidisciplinary Approach for the Development of a Supply Chain in Biomass Conversion of Agrifood Waste Mediated by Larvae of Hermetia illucens L.: From Rearing to By-Product Exploitation
Tipo di pubblicazioneArticolo su Rivista peer-reviewed
Anno di Pubblicazione2024
AutoriDe Santis, E., de Iudicibus A., Lecce Francesca, De Mei Massimiliano, Petrazzuolo F., Del Giudice A., Carnevale M., Gallucci F., Beni C., Assirelli A., Santangelo E., and Arnone Silvia
RivistaAgriculture (Switzerland)
Volume14
ISSN20770472
Abstract

Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) can convert various organic substrates into high added-value biomass. In addition, the residue can be used as a soil conditioner. Several studies have been conducted on a laboratory scale that may not represent what happens on a prototype scale. Using fruit and vegetable waste as a basic substrate, mixing them with agro-industry by-products (called co-substrates), the Hermes project set up a process on medium (2 kg) and large (10 kg) scales with two different feeding regimes (1.25 g/BSFL and 2 g/BSFL). At the mature stage, larval biomass was separated from frass (the by-product of the larval rearing). The production of larval proteins and fats and the use of frass as soil conditioning were evaluated. The lowest feeding regime (1.25 g/BSFL) provided the best waste valorization. The shift towards higher production scales is not completely linear. The addition of co-substrates to fruit and vegetable waste, as they are provided by the large-scale retail trade, can help to standardize a process as part of an insect farm. The frass recovered from the residue of rearing (on the diet or on the agrifood leftovers) was composted and used in field to grow a processing tomato variety. The addition of composted frass assured a slightly lower yield than synthetic fertilizer but there was no statistically significant difference (p > 0.10). This suggests that partial replacement of synthetic fertilizer with composted frass has potential. Overall, the work demonstrated that, using a multidisciplinary approach, the interest and the value in building a supply chain based on bioconversion mediated by Hermetia illucens can be emphasized. © 2024 by the authors.

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URLhttps://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85199604809&doi=10.3390%2fagriculture14071010&partnerID=40&md5=cb658bfdd5795e71422eed8a18fa0378
DOI10.3390/agriculture14071010
Citation KeyDeSantis2024