Given the high demand for chitin now and in the future, what would be the feasibility of obtaining this from dead insects ? I assume it would take a substantial amount of insects to yield even a small amount of chitin ? I am thinking of the large amounts of waste insects generated from the pest control industry and similar which could yield useful products.
Hello Katherine,
As you know the current main sources of raw material for the production of chitin are cuticles of various crustaceans, in particular crabs and shrimps. Given that chitin found in insects is alpha chitin similar to shrimp and crab I think chitin production from insect may be hard to justify commercially unless it comes with some new properties that make it desirable for investment. In addition, the low purity chitin/chitosan have a relatively low price which might hamper its production probably costly from sources with lower waste stream e.g. insects compared to crab/shrimp shell. also, it might not be easy to collect and sort dead insects into a continuous stream for chitin production just like what fishery industry does with crab/shrimp shells. Nevertheless, a better isolation/purification method for production of chitin developed for insects that outshine the current techniques could make it feasible.
It is possible to get relatively high quantities chitin from insects that are reared for food or feed: this is a growing industry in several countries.
Thank you. I already raise periplaneta on a large scale and chitin would be a useful byproduct for the future.
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