Effects of black soldier fly larvae (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) on food waste and sewage sludge composting

Abstract

With the rapid development of the economy and population, the improvement of life level, enormous organic wastes have been generated. Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) treatment is an attractive management method as it provides a strategy for waste treatment while also generate biofertilizers. The aim of this study was to evaluate the BSFL processing residue quality through the physical and chemical parameters. The sewage sludge (T1) and food waste (T2) were employed with BSFL (7:1.2 ration on fresh weight basis) and without BSFL T3 and T4 was marked control and composted for 9 days. The results showed that the BSFL composting reduced the organic matter by 14.51–21.98% and the accumulation of volatile fatty acids by 10.12–28.50%. While BSFL composting greatly increased total kjeldahl nitrogen by 23.15% compared with T4, T1 remained essentially unchanged. The additive of BSFL was significantly increased the total phosphorous and potassium in T2, but T1 remained stable compared with control. These results showed that the BSFL could improve the quality of end product and promote the food waste degradation. The current study indicates that the BSFL management provides an environmentally relevant alternative with very convenience in food waste. Further research should focus on residue sanitation.