Brooke Morgan, Food Technologist
When I first joined Good Grub Agritech as an Honour’s student in Food Technology, I didn’t expect to find myself knee-deep in black soldier fly larvae. But that’s exactly where I landed—and it’s been one of the most rewarding chapters of my academic journey.
Good Grub is the brainchild of Jessie Stanley, a seasoned food entrepreneur with a deep passion for environmental change. The company’s mission is ambitious: to transform New Zealand’s food system by using insect bioconversion to turn food waste into high-quality protein for animal feed. It sounds futuristic, but the science is here—and so is the need.
Thanks to a Bioresource Processing Alliance (BPA) grant, I had the chance to intern with Jessie and her team for six months from late 2022. That $18,000 grant funded the initial research that helped validate their bold concept. I conducted some of the company’s very first experiments in collaboration with Massey University, looking at how food waste could be efficiently processed by black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) and then transformed into usable protein.
It wasn’t always glamorous. Rearing larvae, analysing nutrient profiles, running feeding trials—there were long days in the lab and moments where results weren’t as clear-cut as we hoped. But it was real science, applied directly to a real-world problem. And more importantly, it helped Good Grub move from a great idea to a credible business with data-backed proof of concept.
That early research gave Jessie and the team the momentum to scale up. They’ve since gathered incredible support and are now planning a commercial pilot plant by 2026. Being part of the groundwork that contributed to that growth makes me proud.
This project changed the way I see the future of food. Insects aren’t just pests—they’re powerhouses for sustainability. Instead of sending organic waste to landfill, we can feed it to larvae, which in turn become nutrient-rich protein for fish, poultry, and pets. It’s a closed-loop system that just makes sense.
As a young food technologist, being trusted to help shape something so innovative and impactful has been incredibly empowering. I’m grateful to Jessie, Good Grub, and the BPA for giving me the chance to apply my skills where they really matter. This wasn’t just a research project—it was a launchpad.
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