Development of Tenebrio molitor, Alphitobius diaperinus and Zophobas morio larvae in a substrate enriched with functional ingredients of aromatic and medicinal plants of the Greek flora

The enrichment of insect diets with functional ingredients and bioactive compounds may greatly enhance insect development and growth. In this context, the objective of the present study was to study the development of larvae of the yellow mealworm, Tenebrio molitor, the supeworm, Zophobas morio and the lesser mealworm, Alphitobius diaperinus, on a substrate enriched with functional ingredients of aromatic and medicinal plants of the Greek flora.
Particularly, insect feed was enriched with a mixture of (a) aromatic plants of the Greek flora, such as essential oils of oregano, thyme, sage and rosemary, and their post-distillation residues; (b) linseed oil, rock-samphire and industrial cannabis which are vegetable sources of ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and c) olives paste by-product. Insect diet was enriched with various percentages (10, 20 and 30%) of the aforementioned mixture, whereas wheat bran alone served as control.
Our results showed that even a 10% inclusion level of the tested mixture in the insect diet greatly improved larval growth of T. molitor. Regarding A. diaperinus, larval development improved with 20 and 30% dietary inclusion of the tested mixture. In contrast, the larval development of Z. morio was not affected by the dietary treatments tested.
Our results aim to promote insect production for food and feed by enriching insect feeds with functional ingredients with desired properties.
This research has been co‐financed by the European and Greek national funds through the Operational Program Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, under the call RESEARCH – CREATE – INNOVATE (Τ2ΕΔΚ-02356, InsectFeedAroma).