Cockroach Milk

Diploptera punctata, aka the Pacific Beetle Cockroach, is the only known viviparous cockroach, which means that its offspring develop inside its body before it gives birth to them. It bears live young.

While its babies are growing, it nourishes them with a milk protein crystal. Some doctors in India think this cockroach milk crystal would make a "fantastic" protein supplement for humans, since it contains three times the energy of an equivalent mass of dairy milk.

Dr. Subramanian Ramaswamy extols its virtues, "It's time-released food. If you need food that is calorifically high, that is time released, and food that is complete — this is it."

More: Times of India, International Union of Crystallography Journal

Diploptera punctata

     Posted By: Alex - Wed Aug 03, 2016
     Category: Food | Insects and Spiders





Comments
Cockroaches bearing live young and giving them milk? Ooooohhhh, so that's where politicians come from!
Posted by TheCannyScot on 08/03/16 at 07:08 AM
Wow, that's precisely what I did NOT want to see while eating my breakfast.
Posted by A Nonny Mouse on 08/03/16 at 07:52 AM
There's a science fiction book by Lois McMaster Bujold that has (almost) this exact scenario in it. It's called "A Civil Campaign", and it's hilarious!
Posted by mjbird on 08/03/16 at 09:36 AM
In order to be able to live forever, even with my head cut off, sure, I would dine on roach milk! I already prefer keeping in dark cool places as it is.
Posted by Jessica on 08/03/16 at 02:09 PM
Since the cockroach in the official state pest of Florida, our fair and weird state would be the ideal place to harvest them. Every building and structure has hundreds of them. It's a bit disguising to step on them barefoot in the dark, sort of a wet crunch and you can hear the survivors scurrying off to their vile dens in the walls. If you poison them, Harris Roach Tablets, in the morning light you find them on their backs on the floor in their death dance spinning in circles. The state capitol buildings contain the largest, most foul and most aggressive. Why our business minded governor Scott could start a company to harvest and milk them to deal with shortages in the state budget. Just set up a trap every night and sell the little guys and girls for a bounty. They are very hardy and tough so not much mortality while shipping them.
Posted by Gator Guy on 08/03/16 at 05:40 PM
No, no and no. I live in Florida and have a healthy fear of these things, although they don't seem to fear me. Suckers run right AT me. You can keep your cockroach milk.
Posted by Courtney on 08/03/16 at 06:22 PM
From a marketing standpoint they would probably want a different name than "cockroach milk." I can't imagine someone looking at the selections in the dairy case saying, "do I want almond milk or cockroach milk?"
Posted by Jim on 08/04/16 at 01:29 PM
It should be pointed out that many species of cockroach are viviparous. An excellent example is the Hissing Cockroach.
Posted by Johnny O on 08/09/16 at 02:11 PM
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