Villagers make a living selling wasp larvae to local restaurants in southern Thailand.

The residents built a wasp farm that houses more than 50 hives near a forest in Trang province.

They said they have been tapping rubber trees for 16 years as their main source of income but began breeding the paper wasps to supplement their earnings. The wasps' young are considered a local delicacy, with each kilogramme of the maggot-like creatures selling for around 800 THB (22 USD).

Footage shows how the bee suit-covered farmers harvested the precious grubs by cutting open the hives to reveal the combs containing the brood. The plump larvae are then plucked one by one using tweezers and placed onto a tray.

Each nest yields between two to five kilogrammes of larvae, which are often served stir-fried in coconut milk and herbs in restaurants.

Narong Korsakul, the president of paper wasp harvesters in Trang province, said wasp breeding became popular following the Covid-19 pandemic. He said the insects are believed to be highly nutritious, and are said to be able to improve eyesight and treat asthma.

Another harvester, Suriyan Korsakul, 39, who manages 20 wasp nests in the Ratsada district, said he has spent more than 15 years studying and breeding wasps.

He said: 'At first, I was interested in wasp farming as a hobby. I did it to feed my family because the wasps are easy to find in the forest, and nutritious. Now, I do it to make more money. I have harvested around 100,000 THB (2,748 USD) of wasp larvae since the flu pandemic ended.'

He added that unlike old wasp hunting methods that involved burning, breeding them was more sustainable, as the hives are returned to nature to allow the wasps to rebuild until the next harvest season.