Green protein: Could insects or mealworms be an alternative for animal feed?

Mealworms on the premises of Alpha Protein. Based in Germany's Bruchsal, the start-up is trying to breed mealworms as animal feed by repurposing food waste. — Photos: dpa

STARTUPS and research institutes have long seen insects as a more sustainable possibility for animal feed. Farmers too are increasingly open to switching to new kinds of feed as they seek to make their sector more sustainable.

"Beneficial insects are fundamentally capable of converting unusable biomass or food by-products into high-quality fats, proteins and fertilisers," says Bernhard Krüsken, secretary general of the German Farmers' Association.