Poultry News
  • Production
    • Broiler Production
    • Ducks
    • Egg Production
    • Game
    • Hatching
    • Housing
    • Turkeys
  • Processing
  • Business & Politics
    • Business
    • Economics
    • EU & Politics
    • Marketing
    • People
    • Training & Education
  • Welfare
    • Environment
    • Food Safety
    • Vet & Medication
    • Welfare
  • Feed
  • Genetics
  • New Products
  • Magazines
    • July 2025
    • 2025 National Egg and Poultry Awards finalists supplement
    • June 2025
    • 2025 Innovation supplement
    • May 2025
    • April 2025
    • March 2025
    • 2025 Feed and Nutrition supplement
    • February 2025
    • January 2025
    • December 2024
    • November 2024
    • October 2024
    • September 2024
    • 2024 Building for the Future supplement
    • August 2024
    • 2024 Poultry Health supplement
    • July 2024
    • 2024 National Egg and Poultry Awards finalists supplement
    • June 2024
    • 2024 Innovation supplement
    • Pig & Poultry Fair 2024
    • May 2024
    • April 2024
    • March 2024
    • February 2024
    • January 2024
    • December 2023
    • November 2023
    • Processing Equipment Supplement – Nov 2023
    • October 2023
    • Building Supplement – Sept 2023
    • September 2023
  • Jobs
    • Browse Jobs
    • Post a Job
    • Manage Jobs
  • Events
    • National Egg and Poultry Awards
    • Poultry Fair
    • Webinars
Twitter LinkedIn
  • FREE Email Newsletters
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Contact Us
Twitter LinkedIn
Podcast
Poultry News
  • Production
    • Broiler Production
    • Ducks
    • Egg Production
    • Game
    • Hatching
    • Housing
    • Turkeys
  • Processing
  • Business & Politics
    • Business
    • Economics
    • EU & Politics
    • Marketing
    • People
    • Training & Education
  • Welfare
    • Environment
    • Food Safety
    • Vet & Medication
    • Welfare
  • Feed
  • Genetics
  • New Products
  • Magazines
    1. July 2025
    2. 2025 National Egg and Poultry Awards finalists supplement
    3. June 2025
    4. 2025 Innovation supplement
    5. May 2025
    6. April 2025
    7. March 2025
    8. 2025 Feed and Nutrition supplement
    9. February 2025
    10. January 2025
    11. December 2024
    12. November 2024
    13. October 2024
    14. September 2024
    15. 2024 Building for the Future supplement
    16. August 2024
    17. 2024 Poultry Health supplement
    18. July 2024
    19. 2024 National Egg and Poultry Awards finalists supplement
    20. June 2024
    21. 2024 Innovation supplement
    22. Pig & Poultry Fair 2024
    23. May 2024
    24. April 2024
    25. March 2024
    26. February 2024
    27. January 2024
    28. December 2023
    29. November 2023
    30. Processing Equipment Supplement – Nov 2023
    31. October 2023
    32. Building Supplement – Sept 2023
    33. September 2023
    Featured

    Poultry Business – July 2025 issue

    By Chloe RyanJuly 1, 2025
    Recent

    Poultry Business – July 2025 issue

    July 1, 2025

    Poultry Business – 2025 National Egg and Poultry Awards finalists supplement

    July 1, 2025

    Poultry Business – June 2025 issue

    June 9, 2025
  • Jobs
    • Browse Jobs
    • Post a Job
    • Manage Jobs
  • Events
    • National Egg and Poultry Awards
    • Poultry Fair
    • Webinars
Twitter LinkedIn
Poultry News
Environment

Dutch study finds problems in feed use of housefly larvae

Colin LeyBy Colin LeyJune 28, 20162 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email

The direct environmental benefits of using housefly larvae in animal feed rations could be offset by the indirect negatives caused by using waste to produce insect protein instead of applying the same waste to generate bio-energy.

This is the key conclusion of studies carried out in the Netherlands by Wageningen University scientist, Hannah van Zanten.

“Looking to insects as a protein-rich source of animal feed is logical,” said Ms van Zanten (pictured above), noting that alternatives, such as soya cultivation have had “major negative effects” such as deforestation, loss of biodiversity and high CO2 emissions, especially in Brazil and Argentina.

After studying the environmental effects of using housefly larvae for animal feed production in the Netherlands, using data from an insect farm, two waste processing companies and an animal feed company that processes the larvae, she said that the housefly larvae appeared to be more eco-friendly per kilo than either soya or fishmeal. That conclusion, however, only applied in terms of the direct effects of switching from soya and fishmeal to housefly larvae.

When Ms van Zanten also analysed the indirect effects of the switch, the story became much more “nuanced”.

“In this part of the study we fed the larvae partly with chicken manure and partly with waste,” she said. “The waste was the problem as 98% is currently being fermented for generating bio-energy, which replaces fossil fuels and so benefits the environment. Feeding all this waste to insects would increase the need for fossil fuels, resulting in a negative environmental balance overall.”

Her final conclusion, therefore, is that it’s currently “unwise” to aim at insect production for animal feed, a result which she agreed would be different if the Netherlands was to become less reliant on fossil fuels in favour of wind and solar power, so reducing its use of waste for bio-energy.

Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
Previous ArticleRodenticide training is still available
Next Article Major improvements for Poland’s SuperDrob company
Colin Ley

Read Similar Stories

Environment

Noble Foods becomes first UK egg producer to roll out new pollinator monitoring tech

February 26, 20252 Mins Read
Environment

New report indicates free-range not to blame for Wye and Usk water quality

August 12, 20243 Mins Read
Environment

Eat less chicken to mitigate environmental impact of BCC, Compassion in World Farming says

July 1, 20245 Mins Read
Latest News

Pershore’s finest

July 4, 2025

Tackling red mite

July 4, 2025

Comment: Morrisons painful decision to stock imported chicken

July 4, 2025
Sponsored Content

Navigating Sustainability in Egg Production: Practical Steps for Producers

June 1, 2025

Maintain stable and continuous coccidiosis control amidst stocking density reductions

November 1, 2024
© 2024 MA Agriculture Ltd, a Mark Allen Group company

Privacy Policy | Cookies Policy | Terms & Conditions

  • Farmers Weekly
  • AA Farmer
  • Farm Contractor
  • Pig World

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.