A Complete Analysis of Grasshopper Farming Methods and Techniques

Grasshoppers, commonly known as locusts, are recognized as pests. However, several farmers including Gao Yunlong in Neiqiu County, Hebei, turned a pest into a treasure and found their way to prosperity by farming and selling grasshoppers, with annual income exceeding ten thousand yuan, and they also encouraged surrounding farmers to take up grasshopper farming.

The value of grasshoppers

Grasshoppers are insects used both as medicine and as food, belonging to the class Insecta, order Orthoptera, family Acrididae. There are 859 species of grasshoppers in total, but only the East Asian migratory locust grasshopper and the rice migratory locust grasshopper can be used as medicine and for food. These two grasshoppers are rich in nutrients, with tender flesh and a delicious flavor like shrimp. Grasshoppers are rich in protein, carbohydrates, insect hormones and other active substances, and contain a variety of vitamins as well as phosphorus, calcium, iron, zinc, manganese and other elements. Grasshoppers are also a good medicine for treating illness. According to the Compendium of Materia Medica, grasshoppers used alone or in combination can treat many diseases, such as tetanus, infantile convulsions, fever, asthma, bronchitis and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Grasshoppers are dioecious and oviparous, reproducing 2 generations per year, namely the summer locust and the autumn locust.

Biological characteristics of grasshoppers  

Grasshoppers are insects used both as medicine and as food, oviparous, belonging to the class Insecta, order Orthoptera, family Acrididae. According to statistics, the family Acrididae has 859 species of grasshoppers in total, but only two can be used as medicine and for food, namely the East Asian migratory locust grasshopper and the rice migratory locust grasshopper. Grasshoppers are rich in protein, carbohydrates, insect hormones and other active substances, and contain vitamins A, B and C as well as phosphorus, calcium, iron, zinc, manganese and other elements.  

Grasshoppers are not only a delicious dish but also a good medicine for treating illness. Used alone or in combination, grasshoppers can treat many diseases, such as tetanus, infantile convulsions, fever and asthma. Grasshoppers are dioecious, mate naturally and are oviparous. Under natural conditions they reproduce 2 generations per year, namely the summer locust and the autumn locust.

Construction of grasshopper farming sheds

Grasshoppers have a habit of flying, so they must be raised in sheds. The farming shed should be built in a well-ventilated, sunny spot, and the ground should be 10 cm higher than the surrounding ground for drainage. The soil should preferably be sandy loam that does not clump easily, to make it easy to collect grasshopper eggs. Within the farming shed, grow monocotyledonous plants such as wheat or corn for the grasshoppers to eat. Every 10,000 grasshoppers require an area of 15 sq m. You can use idle space inside or outside the yard, and use angle iron or wooden stakes, bamboo poles, bamboo strips, etc. to build the shed frame. According to the size of the shed, make a shed cover with gauze netting, bury the bottom edge underground, and leave a doorway. Install a zipper at the doorway to prevent the grasshoppers from escaping. The shed height is 1.5 m-2 m, and the outside of the shed can be covered with plastic film for rain protection and insulation. Construction of the shed must be completed before the end of April.

Farming management of grasshoppers

The starting development temperature for grasshoppers is 15°C, the maximum development temperature is 40°C, the suitable development temperature is 25-32°C, the relative air humidity is 85%-92%, and the soil moisture content is 15%-18%. Below 14°C or above 40°C, grasshoppers stop feeding and die. When the temperature is 28-30°C, grasshopper eggs hatch. First prepare non-toxic soil and sawdust mixed evenly at 1:2, with a moisture content of 20%-30%. Spread 3-5 cm of soil in a container and press it firm, distribute the grasshopper eggs evenly on the soil, and cover with 1 cm of the mixed soil. Cover the container with film and check once every half day. After finding small grasshoppers, use a soft brush to move them onto the food inside the shed. Hatching is complete in 10-15 days. Small grasshoppers like to eat fresh, tender wheat seedlings, corn seedlings, weeds and other monocotyledonous plants, and their food intake is very small.

Grasshoppers at the 1st-3rd instar should be protected from rain. At 27-35 days of age they become adults. During this period they molt once every 5-7 days, molting 5 times in total. Each grasshopper lays 70-100 eggs. Grasshoppers have the habit of living in groups and migratory flight; living in groups and migratory flight are for feeding and for reproduction and egg laying. Therefore, after grasshoppers emerge as adults and before egg laying, appropriate artificial disturbance should be given to make them fly within the shed, so as to increase the quantity and quality of egg laying. The eggs laid should be covered with wheat bran, weeds, etc. before freezing to keep them warm and moist. Adult grasshoppers, if not kept for breeding, should be sold promptly. New farmers can purchase breeding grasshoppers or eggs from farming operations (households). Grasshopper farming is a specialty form of farming; if there are no orders and no reliable sales channel, farming must be done with caution.

Many people may not know the nutritional value of grasshoppers and think it is just an insect. In fact, grasshoppers are a very good dish, and their nutritional value is very rich; their protein content is very high. Many people like to eat them.