Disgusting As It May Sound, Scientists Think Cockroach Milk Is The Next Superfood

While there is no denying that cows are the popular source of milk, this may no longer be the case in the future. After all, scientists have found a way to extract milk from a much cheaper source: Cockroach, which is said to produce milk that tastes no different from what cows produce.

With more than 750 millions tonnes of cow’s milk produced and consumed year after year, beyond the shadow of doubt, cows are still the biggest and most popular source of dairy products. However, it is also worth noting that other alternatives to cow’s milk, such as soy milk, are also gaining popularity.

Unlike other species of cockroaches, Diploptera Punctata, otherwise known as Pacific beetle cockroach, gives birth to its young and feeds them with the milk it produces.

However, it is predicted that, in years to come, people will be drinking milk from the most unlikely source, cockroach. While the thought of drinking the said insect’s milk surely disgusts many, a researcher from the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine in India has claimed that the nutritional value of the cockroach product is much higher than other milks.

Apparently, there is no reason to feel disgusted by the idea of drinking cockroach milk as the product comes from an especially cultured species of insect, Diploptera Punctata. Unlike other cockroach species that lays eggs, Diploptera Punctata gives birth to young cockroaches and feeds them with milk.

According to scientists, cockroach milk is rich in protein and other minerals, such as iron, zinc, and calcium.

Believing in the health benefits of cockroach milk, South African company Gourmet Grubb has already started farming cockroaches and is producing milk from the insects, branding it as Entomilk.

“One of the most pivotal benefits of Entomilk is that it has a high protein content and is rich in mineral such as iron, zinc, and calcium,”Gourmet Grubb says.

Milking cockroaches is no easy task, though. For one thing, around 1,000 cockroaches are needed in order to yield 100grams of milk.

“The only way (to milk a cockroach]) would be to make cultures of yeast with the genes in it for making this milk,” explained Dr. Barbara Stay from The University of Iowa.

Hence, some companies now farm cockroaches for milking purposes, believing that it will be the superfood of the future.

Will cockroach milk be the superfood of the future? Is it really the answer to food sustainability amidst rapidly growing world population?

Only time will tell.