Free maggot survey

[Faza]

I ordered a free sample today have been wanting to try them as an alternative to termites for a while .
One question though how long do they store in the fridge without pupaeing ?????

[Diane]

Mine have been in the bottom of the fridge in a container inside a sealed plastic bag a week tomorrow and they are still going, no pupae that I can see. The bag and box gets opened everyday to take some out then back into the fridge.
Ive put the sample of pupae in the freezer until I use the maggots up.
Son has taken some to feed to their frogs and lizards so not doubt will be getting feedback from there too.

[gomer]

I am interested in the price Gerry when you work out if its viable.Would be handy if going away and getting someone to feed them out, may even be an viable alternative to breeding them yourself.

[Gerry Marantelli]

Thanks All for the feedback

It seems like the packs we sent have been a success for the members here and i am planning now to place them online for sale.

I would like a little more feedback re pack sizes/prices etc - so i can see what is achievable for people as far as buying finch food etc.

So if you could provide feedback on the following it will help me finalise things for our maggot packs.
- Size: I am thinking of releasing a 250g and a 1kg pack - are these good sizes for finch people or was the 250g I sent out for the trial too much?
- Price: I think we will start at $10.50 for 250g and $37 for 1kg - if we get very good sales it will come down, as many of our other insects have over time, but that requires reaching large turnover levels - so we will see how we go - I hope that as they will be cheaper than mealworms and everyone here says they are also better than mealworms, it seems an OK place to start. Are these prices viable for finch food?
- Packaging: we only got positive feedback on the packs so we will leave them the same (postal tubes with calico end) they seem ok for storing maggots in fridge too. any other feedback welcome.
- Mailing: we usually charge $9 express post everywhere in Australia and it does not matter how many packs you buy - so add on mealworms , maggots, crickets, pupae and you will minimise how much the post adds to each insect.

In a nutshell (or seed hull more appropriate for here) you could buy 1kg of maggots delivered express for $46 with a couple of weeks in the fridge and maybe some stored frozen they could last over a month. Is this viable for members? if you take account of time and costs as well as trouble with partners etc to grow your own it is probably cheaper to buy. what do you think?

Again many thanks for the feedback and remember - last week for the free offer - so PM me if you haven't tried them yet.

cheers
Gerry

[jusdeb]

Just one thing gerry ..... do you reckon you could attach a homing thingy to the flys please .

Little buggers just want to hang around the house 24/7

[Gerry Marantelli]

well they do come with a sticker that says refrigerate before opening as some may have hatched!

we thought that was easier than teaching them to home.

In our house we have a fly swat in every room and lots of black spots on the walls that look like little sqaushed flies - wonder why - as we can't use poison due to being an insect farm and frog centre.

[BENSONSAN]

gerry top product. I froze them and there a treat fed them out this morning. Freeze fine also. Much smaller then my own maggots. But consumed just the same. I would say there a better size then mine but its making zero difference (they get smashed by the birds}. Also all arrived fine.

And i must say thank you very very much!!! Recommend them highly.

Ben

[Diane]

Im glad you posted that Ben I was just wondering if I should freeze some myself as I was feeding them out. Looks like they will go in the freezer soon. Thats great, that means they will last even longer now.

[natamambo]

I gave some to the Gouldians, redbrows, painteds and longtails but they ignored them, even though I put them in the "special food" bowls that only ever contain their treats.

Fed some to the newly arrived chats and wrens today and the wrens pigged out on them! Chats took some but not as enthusiastically as the wrens who came straight to the foodbowl even before I'd left the room (they're in a quarantine cage at present).

My maggots are still in the tube in the fridge and doing fine. pupae are in the freezer waiting on some time when I want to try them out on the softbills (still experimenting with what the softbills will eat as they only arrived a few hours ago).

I'm in and ready to buy!

Thanks heaps Gerry.

[Lukec]

gerry top product. I froze them and there a treat fed them out this morning. Freeze fine also. Much smaller then my own maggots. But consumed just the same. I would say there a better size then mine but its making zero difference (they get smashed by the birds}. Also all arrived fine.

And i must say thank you very very much!!! Recommend them highly.

Ben

Hi Ben

How long do you think they will last before they start to break down in the freezer?