ALBERT

Description: This study was carried out to assess individuals’ willingness to pay (WTP) for UZIMAX, a novel plant-based biopesticide developed for malaria vector control. The biopesticide is estimated to kill up to 100% of Anopheles larvae within 48 h of application and poses no risks to human health and the environment. However, scaling-up of its adoption requires clear evidence of its acceptance by individuals in malaria-prone areas. We conducted Becker-DeGroot-Marschak (BDM) revealed preference auctions with 204 participants to determine their willingness to pay (WTP) for community-based application of the biopesticide to control malaria vectors. Nearly all participants were willing to pay at the lowest bid price of the biopesticide, and the majority of them expressed great interest in pooling resources to facilitate biopesticide application. Household per capita income and building capacity of households through training significantly increased WTP. These findings imply high adoption potential of the technology and the need to devise inclusive policy tools, especially those that enhance collective action, resource mobilization and capacity building to empower both men and women and stimulate investment in eco-friendly technologies for malaria prevention. Financial and labor resource mechanisms managed by the community could potentially spur adoption of the biopesticides, and in turn, generate health, environmental and economic benefits to households in malaria-prone communities.

Description: The sustainable utilization of black soldier fly (BSF) for recycling organic waste into high-quality protein feed and organic fertilizer with a low environmental footprint is gaining momentum worldwide. Although BSF farming is becoming a rapidly growing agribusiness, studies on BSF farming's economic aspects are limited. This study analyses the economic implications of farming BSF for animal feeds and frass fertilizer (FF) production to provide evidence of the economic benefits using experimental data. The BSF larvae were reared using brewery spent grain amended with sawdust, biochar, and gypsum, to determine the best waste combination for cost-effective production. The agronomic performance of FF on the maize crop was assessed using field experiments. Our results demonstrated that the rearing substrate accounts for 81 - 90% of the total BSF production cost. The utilization of frass fertilizer as an additional value-added product would increase farmer's net income by 5 - 15 folds compared to BSF farming alone. Feedstock amended with 20% biochar increased net income by 10 - 64% for BSF larvae and FF production compared to other feedstocks. Production of 1 tonne of dried BSF larvae (US$ 900) would generate 10 - 34 tonnes of frass fertilizer worth US$ 3000 - 10,200. Maize grown on plots treated with FF yielded 29 - 44% higher net income than plots amended with commercial organic fertilizer. Furthermore, smallholder insect farmers' direct use of FF for maize production would generate 30 - 232% higher net income than farmers purchasing similar FF. Our results demonstrate for the first time the role of insect farming in circular economy and justify the opportunities for future investments that would lead to enhanced sustainability for agricultural and food systems, especially for smallholder farmers in low- and middle-income countries.