BHARDEV: In a village a little over an hour's drive from Nepal's capital of Kathmandu, six women wearing yellow rubber gloves and surgical masks work in a shed, gently squeezing the wet larvae of the black soldier fly into small plastic containers.
Another woman slices pears and wilted vegetables to feed the insects, known more commonly as BSF, that are held in two plastic cages equipped with thermal panels for artificial light and heat to maintain the required temperature inside the tin-roofed 800-square-foot shed.
The protein-rich insect eggs are dried and processed into feed for fish, chicken and pigs, and will sell at 70 Nepali rupees (about $0.55 cents) a kilo.
Opened in March with a $110,000 grant provided by the Women's Bank, Finland, through the charity Federation of Women Entrepreneurs Association of Nepal, the fly farm is billed as the first of its kind in the Himalayan nation.
It is owned and operated by the women, all members of a "Sisters Group" in Bhardev, a small village with a population of about 2,500 people, 30 km (19 miles) south of the capital.
Nepal is among the world’s ten poorest countries, and people in villages are mainly subsistence farmers. The economic condition of women is especially vulnerable, with no extra source of income or employment other than on their tiny family farms.
The average salary of civil servants in Nepal is barely about $300 a month, so the money to be made from fly larvae is clearly a step forward from the village women.
They expect to be harvesting 3,500 kg of larvae in one production cycle, which ranges between 45 and 60 days.
"It is a model green business to provide additional income to women without requiring them to invest all their time in it and is environmentally friendly," charity official Jeebesh Bikram Adhikary said.
"We are experimenting whether the BSF can be harvested in the extreme cold and adverse climatic conditions," Adhikary said.
"The results so far have been good and we are looking to expand the facility to Chitwan or Kailali in future," he said referring to two regions in Nepal's southern plains, where the climate is more favorable.
Ramesh Shrestha runs a small fish farm and is ready to become a customer.
"I can buy up to 50 kgs of the feed every day if the farm is able to supply," he said.
Mana Maya Shrestha, who is among the women leading and managing the farm, said their current customers are mainly poultry farmers.
The 47-year-old said some women did not want to engage in this type of business. To begin with, she found touching the insect and its eggs "disgusting".
"I am used to it now," the mother of two said.
"I enjoy the sensation when they wiggle."
Reuters
Sat Aug 26 2023
Black Soldier Fly larvae feed on the slice of cucumber recovered from organic waste at a farm run by seven women entrepreneurs from Bhardev village on the outskirts of Lalitpur, Nepal. - REUTERS
Kertas kabinet wujud sektor sukan dibentang dalam tempoh sebulan - Hannah
Hannah berkata dengan data yang lebih menyeluruh melibatkan sektor industri sukan nanti, pihaknya akan mampu merangsang pertumbuhan sukan di negara ini dengan lebih baik.
Tiga Syarikat Semikonduktor umum melabur di Pulau Pinang - Kon Yeow
Tiga syarikat semikonduktor dari China menyatakan komitmen untuk membuat pelaburan baharu di Pulau Pinang.
Pindaan garis panduan lawatan: Sekolah diharap susun semula program - Fadhlina
Semua sekolah diharap dapat menyusun semula program lawatan masing-masing berikutan pindaan Garis Panduan Lawatan Murid Sekolah pada tahun lepas bagi mengukuhkan pembelajaran di luar kelas, kata Menteri Pendidikan, Fadhlina Sidek.
Kebajikan pendidikan anak-anak dijaga sehingga tamat sekolah - KPM
Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia akan memastikan kebajikan pendidikan anak-anak 10 pegawai dan anggota Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia yang terkorban dalam nahas helikopter di Lumut, Perak, terus dijaga sehingga mereka tamat persekolahan.
Chegubard ditahan polis berkaitan hantaran mengenai kasino di Forest City
Chegubard ditahan di Ibu Pejabat Polis Daerah (IPD) Dang Wangi di sini berkaitan hantaran mengenai pengoperasian kasino di Forest City pada Sabtu.
Zahid minta pihak dalam BN buka "buku baharu"
Ahmad Zahid menegaskan senario politik tanah air sudah berubah dan terdapat banyak video lama dari parti lawan yang meminta pengundi menyokong DAP.
Malaysia kongsi pengalaman dalam usaha berterusan mempertahan Palestin
Delegasi negara akan berkongsikan peranan Malaysia dalam usaha berterusan mempertahankan nasib Palestin dalam Persidangan Liga Parlimen Al-Quds kelima yang berlangsung di Istanbul, Turki pada Sabtu.
Universiti Malaya mohon maaf kepada seluruh rakyat Malaysia
Jabatan Pengajian Antarabangsa dan Strategik, Universiti Malaya memohon maaf kepada seluruh rakyat Malaysia berhubung kenytaaan tidak bertanggungjawab Profesor Dr Bruce Gilley pada 24 April lalu.
Genting Malaysia nafi terbabit perbincangan
Selepas Berjaya Corporation Bhd dan Kerajaan Negeri Johor, kini Genting Malaysia Bhd pula menafikan sebarang penglibatan dalam perbincangan mengenai pengoperasian kasino di Forest City, Johor.
Berita tempatan pilihan sepanjang hari ini
Berikut adalah berita yang paling menjadi tumpuan sepanjang Sabtu, 27 April 2024.