Best Mealworm Farming Kits

Buying dried mealworms gets expensive fast. A flock of six chickens getting a handful each per day goes through five to ten pounds of dried mealworms per month, which runs 30 to 60 dollars at retail prices. Growing your own mealworms costs a fraction of that and provides a continuous supply of live, fresh, high-protein treats that your flock will go crazy for.

Mealworm farming is one of the easiest forms of insect husbandry. The worms (actually larval darkling beetles, Tenebrio molitor) live on dry grain substrate, need no special equipment, and reproduce prolifically with minimal attention. A starter colony and a set of stacking bins is all you need to get started.

How Mealworm Farming Works

The lifecycle goes: egg → larva (the mealworm) → pupa → adult beetle. Adult beetles lay eggs in grain substrate. Tiny larvae hatch and grow over eight to ten weeks, shedding their exoskeleton several times. At full size, larvae pupate (a dormant stage lasting one to two weeks) and emerge as adult beetles to restart the cycle.

You harvest the larvae at full size, just before they pupate. A well-managed colony produces a continuous supply because eggs are being laid, larvae are growing, and adults are reproducing simultaneously across multiple containers.

Our Top Picks

DIY Setup

The most popular DIY approach uses three to five plastic drawer-style storage bins (the type from any home goods store) with holes drilled in the lids for ventilation. Fill each bin with two to three inches of wheat bran or rolled oats as substrate. Add vegetable scraps (carrot chunks, potato slices, apple pieces) on top for moisture—mealworms do not drink water and get all their hydration from fresh food.

Start with 500 to 1,000 live mealworms from a supplier. Place them in the first bin on substrate with food. As the colony establishes and beetles begin laying eggs, separate lifecycle stages into different bins: adults in one, growing larvae in another, pupae in a third. This prevents beetles from eating eggs and larvae from disturbing pupae.

Temperature and Environment

Mealworms grow fastest at 75 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit. Below 65 degrees, growth slows dramatically. Above 90 degrees, mortality increases. A room-temperature location in your house, garage, or workshop works for most of the year. In winter, a heat mat under the bins can maintain growth rates. Keep the colony out of direct sunlight and away from moisture sources.

Harvesting

Harvest larvae when they reach full size (about one to one and a quarter inches long) and before they begin to pupate (curling into a C-shape and becoming less active). Scoop larvae from the substrate using a sieve or your hands, rinse briefly if desired, and feed directly to your flock. Fresh, live mealworms are a more nutritious and more exciting treat than dried ones—your chickens will confirm this enthusiastically.

A well-managed colony of several thousand beetles can produce a cup or more of harvestable larvae per week, which is enough to supplement a flock of six to twelve chickens with daily treats at essentially zero ongoing cost beyond the substrate and vegetable scraps you were going to compost anyway.

Scaling Up Production

Once your colony is established and producing consistently, scaling up is straightforward: add more bins. Each additional bin of reproducing beetles adds another stream of larvae. A system of eight to ten bins in various lifecycle stages can produce enough mealworms to supplement a flock of 20 or more chickens daily with zero ongoing cost beyond substrate and vegetable scraps.

For serious production, some keepers build multi-drawer cabinet systems with 10 to 20 shallow trays. Each tray contains a single lifecycle cohort, making harvesting and sorting efficient. The key to scaling is maintaining proper temperature (75 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit) across the entire system—cooler areas of the room produce slower, which creates bottlenecks in the lifecycle.

Nutritional Benefits

Mealworms provide approximately 50 percent protein and 25 percent fat by dry weight. They are also a good source of essential amino acids, particularly methionine and cysteine, which support feather growth and overall health. During molt, increased mealworm treats help hens rebuild their feather coat faster and return to laying sooner.

For quail keepers, mealworms are an especially valuable supplement because quail have higher protein requirements than chickens. The protein boost from daily mealworm treats supports egg production and helps maintain body condition in breeding flocks.

Feed mealworms in moderation—treats should make up no more than 10 percent of the total diet. For a flock of six chickens, this means about two to three tablespoons of mealworms per bird per day. Overfeeding high-fat treats like mealworms can lead to obesity and liver problems, particularly in less active breeds.

Black Soldier Fly Larvae: An Alternative

Black soldier fly (BSF) larvae are gaining popularity as an alternative or complement to mealworms. BSF larvae are higher in calcium and lower in fat than mealworms, making them a better nutritional match for laying hens that need extra calcium for eggshell production. BSF composters process kitchen scraps and produce larvae simultaneously, serving double duty as both a composting system and a treat factory.

The tradeoff is that BSF larvae require warmer conditions (above 70 degrees Fahrenheit consistently) and a composting food source rather than dry grain substrate. They also attract more attention from wildlife than mealworm bins. Many homesteaders run both systems: mealworms in the garage year-round for consistent production, and a BSF composter outdoors in the warm months for additional treats and kitchen-scrap processing.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Mold is the most common problem and almost always results from excess moisture. Reduce or eliminate water sources in the bins and ensure vegetable pieces are not left longer than 24 to 48 hours. Replace any substrate that shows mold growth. Grain mites are another occasional issue—tiny white dots moving on the substrate surface. They are not harmful to the mealworms or your chickens but can multiply rapidly in humid conditions. Reduce humidity and remove the current substrate batch, replacing with fresh, dry material.

Slow production usually means the colony is too cool. Mealworm metabolism is temperature-dependent, and below 65 degrees Fahrenheit, growth and reproduction slow dramatically. A heat mat under the bins during cool months maintains productivity. Low beetle numbers may indicate too-frequent harvesting—always leave at least 50 to 100 larvae per bin to pupate and become the next generation of breeding beetles.

Feeding Mealworms to Your Flock

Scatter mealworms on the ground in the run rather than placing them in a dish. Scattering encourages natural foraging behavior and gives every bird in the flock a chance to find treats rather than letting dominant hens monopolize a single feeding station. Foraging for scattered mealworms provides mental stimulation and physical activity, both of which contribute to flock health and reduce behavior problems like feather pecking.

For quail, toss mealworms directly onto the cage floor. The birds will immediately begin hunting for them, which provides enrichment in an otherwise confined environment. Limit treats to the morning feeding so that birds fill up on their balanced commercial feed throughout the day. Treats offered in the evening may discourage birds from eating their complete ration before roost time.