Meghan Barrett
Assistant Professor of BiologyBiology
ude[dot]ui[at]rrabhgem
Farmed Insect Welfare Research
Barrett M, Miranda C, Veloso IT, Flint C, Perl CD, Martinez A, Fischer B, Tomberlin JK (2024). Grinding as a slaughter method for farmed black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae: Empirically-supported recommendations for more instantaneous and humane practice. Animal Welfare, 33: e16. This research develops the world's first standard operating procedure for humane slaughter of black soldier fly larvae. Over 300 billion BSFL are reared annually each year as livestock animals - but no research or regulations exist to improve their welfare on farms. This project collected evidence on how quickly BSFL die using different grinding machine designs, and developed a standard operating procedure that results in a 99% likelihood of humane death for the animals. The project is interdisciplinary, involving entomologists, agriculture/welfare scientists, and ethicists and was oriented towards the goal of improving the lives of animals farmed as food and feed around the globe.