Question for those that raise mealworms.

[Jmiller89]

We are getting everything we need together to start a mealworm farm. My husband just bought a 50lb bag of wheat bran for substrate and food. He forgot that it was supposed to be organic. Will the non organic wheat bran kill the mealworms if it was sprayed with pesticides? Also, do I need to bake or freeze the wheat bran to remove potential mites or unwanted bugs? Thank you.

 

[ChaosMom]

We are getting everything we need together to start a mealworm farm. My husband just bought a 50lb bag of wheat bran for substrate and food. He forgot that it was supposed to be organic. Will the non organic wheat bran kill the mealworms if it was sprayed with pesticides? Also, do I need to bake or freeze the wheat bran to remove potential mites or unwanted bugs? Thank you.

To your first question: Can the bag be returned/exchanged? If not, does it by any chance say something like “Great for raising mealworms!”? If the latter, it might be worth trying.

There’s no telling which - if ANY - pesticides were used on the wheat. It’s very expensive and takes several years to get OMRI or USDA organic certification in the US, and if it’s a small operation, they might not (yet) be doing this.

I’d try contacting them to ask what it’s been exposed to.

 

[Perris]

We are getting everything we need together to start a mealworm farm. My husband just bought a 50lb bag of wheat bran for substrate and food. He forgot that it was supposed to be organic. Will the non organic wheat bran kill the mealworms if it was sprayed with pesticides? Also, do I need to bake or freeze the wheat bran to remove potential mites or unwanted bugs? Thank you.

what was the wheat bran being marketed for? (As food for horses is common.) If it was being sold as any sort of animal feed, it should be no worse than any other animal feeds for sale where you live, as it will be subject to the same rules and regs.

As to whether or not it needs treatment, it should not, if the bran is fresh and clean - what is the 'best before' date on it? or if that isn't provided, what is the manufacturing date on it? It should be less than 6 months old.

Then open it and have a good look at it; there should be nothing crawling in it or on it, no cobweb type fluff in it; in any such case, take it back to the shop and demand a refund as it is contaminated.