Maggots, an Efficient Source of Protein, May Become Next Superfood for Humans

Re:Maggots, an Efficient Source of Protein, May Become Next ... by jessiewbailey1 on Wednesday January 14, 2026 @11:39AM (#46618266)

Can anyone provide a coherent explanation for why we shouldn't just skip the inefficient step where we convert plant protein to animal protein and just eat a bowl of black beans instead of a maggot concoction? Couldn't we just go for beans if we want supply chain efficiency or meat if we aren't optimizing for that?

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Re:Maggots, an Efficient Source of Protein, May Become Next ... by sneak on Wednesday January 14, 2026 @11:42AM (#46618331)

Many people find meat an order of magnitude more tasty than beans.

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Re:Maggots, an Efficient Source of Protein, May Become Next ... by jessiewbailey1 on Wednesday January 14, 2026 @11:44AM (#46618359)

So eat meat or eat beans. Where do maggots enter the picture.

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Re:Maggots, an Efficient Source of Protein, May Become Next ... by IAmBroom on Thursday January 15, 2026 @08:08AM (#46631896)

The article mentions a 900-ton pile of mango detritus. Exactly how many mango skins and seeds a day would you be willing to eat? (They contain urushiol which causes blisters. Don't eat any!)

But that's just one part of it: this turns waste product into food. Beans don't provide complete amino acids. I don't know if maggots do, but many types of animal flesh do.

Also, most people crave diversity in their diets. How long are you willing to live on an all-bean diet, even if we make it nutritionally complete? Diversity in diet is ideal for humans.

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