I've been looking at the food chain in a different way lately and see a lot of potential for becoming self sustaining, (in an easier way) by removing waste rather than increasing production.. While I love beef, pork and chicken as much as the next guy, it's just not efficient enough anymore to get the average person with average resources involved in growing their own protein..
So I'm taking it upon myself to merge multiple alternative models into one system that fits on a small piece of land or in a small house.. Some I have already done, other parts are a few months away, but the model is based on this..
Small creatures are better at producing growth and turning the waste of our food chain into edible, nutritious food for us, at a low cost, in a small space.
I believe the best hedge against total failure is diversity, so rather than grow "the best" I will be raising multiple stocks to get advantages of them all..
In the works currently:
First step into eating wild, crickets..
this is the part I am currently doing and this is after considering chickens, goats and rabbits..
So I have a 90 gallon tote with 6-800 crickets of breeding size and two more generations in other smaller totes, currently in my house and 8x16 foot shed..
soon they will all be contained in a three level cage I am building that will occupy a 2x4 foot patch of my shed.. From this system I expect to be able to harvest 1000-1500 crickets every two weeks once established. They take a very small amount of food and water to grow and are ready to harvest after only 6 weeks.. only two gallons of water to produce a pound of meat.. There will be some smaller crickets to sell to reptile owners or future cricket farmers around here, which will offset the costs and generate income..
Part 3: Meal worms
aka Beetle larvae
Meal worms are my next project.. Although they aren't as appealing as crickets they do have their advantages.. They will live on old bread which I can get for free, multiply rapidly and enjoy even tighter spaces than crickets.. I am unable to post any predictions about yield until further research..
The easiest transition for most would be growing fish in an aquaponics system.. Everyone has had fish before. However the difference will be raising small minnow like fish that are cooked and ate whole like sardines and anchovies, but fresh water to utilize aquaponics.. Ideally it will be smelt from what research I have done so far..
Feeder fish are hugely wasteful if you think about it.. raising four ounces of fish to feed to another fish to create less than an ounce of fish... you already have more edible fish that is actually cleaner with less toxic metals, why waste it to get tuna instead of sardines?? I like sardines and would really like sardines that keep me alive, so minnows or smelt it is...
Part 4: Rats and Guinea Pigs
Rats are highly prized as food in many parts of the world, often fetching more per pound than poultry and beef.. Rats are easily domesticated and raised vertically.. the birth rate is high as well as the feed conversion rate. When raised in a controlled environment risk of disease is very low. there is no need for antibiotics. They aren't in the sewers or the street. Rats are actually very clean.
guinea pigs aren't as interesting to me right now because they reproduce less, but that may change in the interest of biodiversity..
I look to Asia for an example of too many people in a place that has limited food sources.. They get creative.. If we "hack" the food chain a little bit we can find ways to make more with less..
Anything I've mentioned here can be baked and ground into a high protein "ingredient" for anyone too squeamish to see insects and rats on their plates.. All proposed livestock feed on low quality discarded food and create their own fertilizers too. The main advantage is low land use and ability to house in less than favorable conditions for other animals.. you can't stack chickens in your basement, in the dark... at least I couldn't feel right about it.. But my crickets all pile on top of each other even when they have plenty of room and are nocturnal.. that density is what we are looking for in alternative food production for survival, shtf situations where raising a 1000 pound animal in the rain forest and shipping it half way around the world is no longer an option.. It is also a step towards sustainability, but this is a survival forum and I see great value to survival and preparedness..
Any input or experience will be greatly appreciated, especially in the area of aquaponics and small fish. thanks
Sustainable Microfarm with micro-livestock:Insects, Rodents and Minnows
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