Fruit Fly (Drosophila melanogaster) as Microlivestock

The Vinegar Fly or "Fruit Fly" (Drosophila melanogaster), that is a common "pest" in New Zealand kitchens (1) is farmed for food in Mexico (2). It is a potential edible microlivestock for those interested in food self-sufficiency outside Mexico. Insects in general are reportedly rich in fats, protein and carbohydrates (3). Before you say "yuk" take note it is eaten in Mexico, you could be accused of cultural insensitivity or worse if you say that.  

As an experiment I captured about a teaspoon full of these insects in my kitchen by leaving out a jar with some vinegar at the bottom for about a week (they were breeding in my worm farm which has since been moved outside, I've found they have continued to thrive in the worm farm, even through winter, outside). The insects are attracted to the vinegar and drown in it. I then separated the dead Vinegar Flies from the vinegar with a sieve and discarded the vinegar. I was concerned the vinegar still on the bugs could have "gone bad" over that week and might cause me to vomit, so I boiled the bugs for ten minutes in a soup to kill any germs. I was not sick after eating it. I could not taste or notice the bugs as I drank the soup, aside from being able to see them.

Despite being very small the Vinegar Fly may be one of the best edible microlivestocks anyone with only a small space such as a kitchen can farm, which admittedly isn't saying much, options this small seem to be quite limited. In most situations they would be more for providing essential nutrients than any kind of bulk to full you up. I have found no record of them spreading disease like houseflies and they are actually considered useful in spreading yeasts for making wine and cider (4). 

Scientists are experienced in deliberately raising Vinegar Fly for research purposes and information on how to do this is available online. It may even be possible to combine with recycling by deliberately raising the bugs in a worm farm, which also provides edible Tiger Worms (which I have also tried, they are not bad fried or roasted, after proper preparation (my blog post (5)). 

So next time someone says you've got a Fruit Fly infestation you can say "actually I'm a farmer".

References.

1 Bob Brockie https://www.stuff.co.nz/science/80883607/a-fruit-fly-or-two-is-behind-most-scientific-breakthroughs   2016.

2. Jun Mitsuhashi. Edible Insects of the World. 2017.

3. John Wiseman. SAS Survival Guide. 1999.

4. Andre Crowe. Which New Zealand Insect?  2002.

5. David Nicholls. Cooking Tiger Worms so not tough and rubbery. 2015.

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