TABLE 4.2 Key Factors Associated with the Costs of Small-Scale and Commercial Insect Production Systems Small-scale, rural production
Commercial production
• • • •
• • • • • •
Substrate availability Labor cost Infrastructure costs Quality and accessibility of roads and other transport infrastructure • Transport costs • Fuel costs
Substrate availability Quality of transport infrastructure Transport costs Fuel costs Cost, availability, and quality of electricity Labor cost
Source: Original table for this publication.
significant of these factors are identified in table 4.2 and described in the following subsections. Large-scale, commercial insect farming can exist in parallel with smallscale insect farming. For example, some small-scale farmers can farm for their own home or farm use or sell in local markets, while others could join producer groups, including as subcontractors, that act as commercial enterprises and compete with larger producers in broader markets. Some farmers may even choose to do both at the same time. The research team found examples of this with cricket farming in Thailand and mealworm farming in Korea. In other cases, a large commercial BSFL processor may outsource production to small farms in rural areas. Either way, this is not taking over a small-scale operation—it is outsourcing. When large-scale producers move into areas of more artisanal producers, the small-scale farmers may lose competitive access to local markets but could still produce to meet their own home or onfarm livestock needs. That said, even within the same country or local area, there may be different markets for farmed insects to which both large-scale and small-scale producers can cater. In Nairobi, Kenya, for example, there are farms around the capital that cater to BSF markets since these areas have access to food processors, waste resources, and feed companies. In rural Kenya, by contrast, small-scale cricket farming is more common as it can cater to the local market. Small-Scale Rural Insect Production Substrate Availability Most existing insect farms are small-scale with costs determined by substrate availability. Of the farms reached by the farm-level survey, 76 percent are characterized as “small-scale,” 20 percent are “medium-scale,” and 4 percent are “large-scale.”3 This is aligned with the World Bank team’s observation from field visits that the African insect sector comprises many small producers. A Mainstreaming Insect Farming
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