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The flies turning waste into food, fuel and fertiliser

As populations increase, so does the waste they produce. As they outgrow existing sewage systems, new technologies have arisen to help manage surplus waste in a clean and cost-effective way.

Sanergy, a company based in Nairobi, has turned to the black solider fly for a solution.

As Sheila Kibuthu explains, they collect waste from agriculture, street markets, food processing businesses as well as human waste from the company’s own waterless toilets. They then transport it to a processing plant where the waste is first eaten by fly larvae. Once fattened up, the larvae are dried to form a protein feed for animals and their waste is further processed into cooking fuel and fertiliser.

(Image: Black soldier fly, Credit: Sergio Yoneda / Getty Images.)

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2 minutes