The Rise In The Price Of Meal Worm.

[Richb2004v2]

I went to mu local pet supply shop yesterday to buy food for my fish and terrapins. I was amazed to find the price of meal worm to have more than doubled since my last visit to the shop five weeks ago. I used to pay 30 baht for a bag a couple of years ago. Then it went to 35 baht and than 40 baht. When it went from 40 to 45 in a couple of weeks I began to suspect I was being ripped of being a ferang. However yesterday I went to the shop and found them hand sorting dead meal work for live and a big sign with the price of 100 baht. So, my paranoia proved to be unfounded. I assumed that meal worm would be extremely easy to breed and could not imagine a shortage of them.

If only I have invested in meal worm a few years ago

Has anyone else found the same price rise?

[bina]

they are terribly easy to breed: teh smaller type cant remember the latin name, we always always raised our own. the bigger type is also easy but u have to be more organized about sorting them and feeding them...

both u can do at home: u just need loaves of bread, some damp rags and bran flakes (the small bran that u put in yougurt to eat or cook with, not bran cereal... a few pieces of apple every few days, and then u have to wait... some start to cacoon themselves, then become the beetles, lay eggs, hatch, baby mealyworms, then u leave half in one box (the bug boxes with mesh covers) as food items, the other half u raise for babies, soon u can sell your own.........

in israel they are sold for about 2 shekels a big mealyworm!!!!!!!!

btw ive also eaten them (its become a kibbutz legend about me much to my kids' horror)

bina

israel

[nakachalet]

richb2004v2

i was told by the local petshop owner that the commercial breeders ordered their feeds for the worms from china. somehow for no apparent reason, the mealworms began to slowly changing their color to darker shade and perished.

everyone suspects that feeds were contaminated just like the milk powder from china once was.

no one knows for sure at this time, the real reasons why mealworms perish en mass....

there is a 24 x 26 feet bird cage by my office, and i am experimenting with other feeds for my birds.

even though, several of them can actually greet us with 'sawaddee krup'.... etc.

it is still difficult to imagine paying 800 baht per kilo.... the best cut of meat costs less than that.... lol

in addion, the petchop owner also said that china herself also has many huge cummercial breeders as well....

any inference here....? lol

[Richb2004v2]

Chinese involvement!

The meal worm plot thickens.