AI Helps Grow 6 Billion Roaches at China's Largest Breeding Site (cnet.com)

With the help of AI, folks at a Chinese pharmaceutical company are breeding cockroaches by the billions every year, South China Morning Post reports. From a report: Their purpose: To make a "healing potion" that can cure respiratory, gastric and other diseases. The "potion," consumed by over 40 million people in China, is made by crushing the cockroaches once they reach a desired weight and size, according to the publication. There is a "slightly fishy smell" to the potion, which tastes "slightly sweet" and looks like tea, it added. Some insects are known to have potential health benefits. Besides China's cockroach potion, scientists are also exploring how milk-like protein crystals in roaches could be an excellent source of calories and nutrition. Chewing down on bugs like crickets and mealworms can also give us more protein, according to studies.

Comments

Re:Is there some real science behind it?

[jbmartin6]

There is a lot of research into various aspects of cockroaches, such as their resistance to bacterial infection, but eating them probably isn't going to confer those sorts of benefits. The "potion" mentioned is Kangfu Xinye and gets a lot of press as snake oil, although people who swear by traditional Chinese medicine will deny that. The Journal of Emergency in Traditional Chinese Medicine has a lot of studies on it, I leave it to the reader to decide if these are valid studies or not.