Thanks, Science: In The Future, We'll Be Milking Cockroaches

The future sounds terrible.

In the year 2000, the world learned a valuable lesson about which animals can and can’t produce milk.

And yet, in another way, the world learned nothing, because scientists are now trying to see if they can extract milk from cockroaches.

According to Vice’s Munchies, a team of scientists from the U.S., Japan, Canada, France and India has discovered that milk protein crystals found in cockroaches are a “fantastic” protein” supplement.

The investigation began when a researcher at the University of Iowa began digging – literally – into the shiny crystals that spill out of a crushed roach’s gut. It took a decade to discover that the crystals give young, baby cockroaches a mighty jolt (one single crystal has three times the energy of an equivalent amount of buffalo milk).

Because these crystals have “all the essential amino acids” and contain “proteins, fats and sugars”, science is seeking a way to produce these in large quantities.

Meaning, one day in the future (when cows and goats and… cats are no longer willing to share their dairy produce), we might turn to cockroaches for our morning cereal.

There are not enough 'gagging Jim Carrey' GIFs in the world to adequately convey how we feel about this.

Photo: Disney.