Giving Compass' Take:

• Max De Faria explains how insect farming can be a sustainable, eco-friendly way to provide low-cost high-protein food to those in need.  

• How can similar programs be altered to address multiple issues at once, as this project does? Is there potential to take insect farming into the mainstream?

• Learn how maggot farming might feed farm animals. 

Farms for Orphans (FFO), a nonprofit based in Colorado, is working to establish sustainable food sources for children and orphans in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) through investments in insect farming.

According to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), insect farming has a variety of benefits, including less land use and lower levels of greenhouse gas emissions compared to traditional animal-rearing. Additionally, insects are an excellent source of micronutrients, particularly copper, magnesium, and zinc in which they are high.

FFO is initiating insect farming for communities in the DRC by building the agricultural infrastructure, hiring support staff, and engaging community members in their mission to ensure orphaned and underprivileged children have a sustainable source of nourishment.

The fact is, problems that stem from malnutrition such as stunted growth, impaired cognitive development, compromised immune function, and lost productivity exacerbate many of life’s existing challenges. Malnutrition is often described as one of the biggest missed opportunities in global health. We believe that addressing malnutrition in children can facilitate critical improvements in health, educational attainment, economic productivity, and quality of life.

Read more about the benefits and nutrition of insects by Max De Faria at Food Tank.