What Do Discoid Roaches Eat? A Complete Diet and Gut-Loading Guide

I've kept discoid roach colonies for years, and the question new keepers ask most is some version of "what am I supposed to feed these things?" The honest answer is almost anything — but what you choose changes how nutritious your roaches are as feeders, because whatever is inside the roach at feeding time goes straight into your reptile.

That's the whole game. Discoid roaches (Blaberus discoidalis) are omnivorous and remarkably unfussy. In the wild they eat decaying plant matter, fallen fruit, and leaf litter. In your bin they'll happily take fresh produce, dry grains, commercial diets, and most kitchen scraps. Let me show you how to feed them so they feed your animals better.

The best foods for discoid roaches

Fresh vegetables (daily or every other day)

Vegetables are the cornerstone — vitamins, minerals, moisture, and the calcium and vitamin A precursors that transfer through gut loading.

Top-tier choices:

• ◆Collard greens — high calcium, excellent for gut loading
• ◆Mustard greens — high calcium, readily eaten
• ◆Turnip greens — strong calcium-to-phosphorus profile
• ◆Dandelion greens — outstanding all-around nutrition (pesticide-free only)
• ◆Butternut squash — very high beta-carotene (vitamin A precursor)
• ◆Sweet potato — vitamin A rich; slice thin
• ◆Carrots — beta-carotene, cheap, easy
• ◆Zucchini — good moisture, readily eaten

Good supplemental vegetables: romaine (better than iceberg, not as dense as dark greens), bell peppers (vitamin C), broccoli stems (moderation — goitrogens), cucumber (mostly water, fine for hydration).

Fresh fruits (in moderation, 2-3 times a week)

Fruit is higher in sugar than vegetables, so it complements rather than dominates. Roaches love it.

• ◆Apple slices — easy, good moisture
• ◆Mango — high in vitamins A and C, a roach favorite
• ◆Papaya — digestive enzymes, vitamin C
• ◆Banana — very palatable but sugary; use sparingly
• ◆Blueberries — antioxidants, easy to offer
• ◆Watermelon rind — excellent moisture; they love the white flesh
• ◆Grapes — halve them, good hydration

Dry foods (available at all times)

Dry food provides protein, carbohydrates, and fiber, and it doesn't spoil. Keep a small dish in the bin permanently.

• ◆Commercial roach chow — formulated for feeder roaches, convenient and optimized
• ◆Quality dry dog food — excellent protein; ground or small kibble is easier to eat
• ◆Fish flakes — high protein, readily consumed
• ◆Rolled oats — cheap carbohydrate
• ◆Wheat bran — fiber and carbs, very cheap in bulk
• ◆Chicken layer pellets — high protein, affordable at farm stores

Protein boosters (important for breeding colonies)

If you're running a breeding colony, reproductive females need extra protein. Add one or more:

• ◆Dry cat food (higher protein than dog food)
• ◆Brewer's yeast flakes
• ◆Spirulina powder (sprinkled on veg)
• ◆Bee pollen (nutritional powerhouse)

A quick caution on protein: chronically over-feeding very high-protein diets to roaches has been linked to issues in some feeder species, so use protein boosters to supplement a varied diet, not to replace it.

Foods to avoid

Roaches can technically eat almost any organic matter, but some foods should never go in because they can harm your reptile downstream:

• ◆Citrus (orange, lemon, lime, grapefruit) — high acidity can irritate a reptile's gut
• ◆Avocado — contains persin, toxic to many reptiles and birds
• ◆Onion and garlic — potentially toxic to reptiles
• ◆Iceberg lettuce — not harmful, just nutritionally worthless; don't waste gut space on water
• ◆Spinach in large amounts — oxalic acid binds calcium, counterproductive for gut loading
• ◆Rhubarb — oxalic acid, potentially toxic
• ◆Processed human food — bread, chips, cereal; preservatives and sodium have no place here
• ◆Moldy or rotten food — captive mold introduces harmful bacteria and fungi; always offer fresh and pull old produce before it decays

Feeding schedule

Discoids don't need a rigid schedule. A simple routine:

• ◆Fresh produce: small amount every 1-2 days, only what they finish in 24-48 hours. Remove leftovers before they mold.
• ◆Dry food: keep a small dish available always; refill when empty.
• ◆Water crystals: check every 2-3 days; refresh as they shrink or dry.

That's the whole job — about 60 seconds a day. Discoids are among the lowest-effort animals in the hobby.

Gut-load feeding vs maintenance feeding

It helps to separate two modes:

Maintenance feeding keeps roaches alive and healthy in storage. Any mix of the foods above — kitchen scraps, oats, dog food, water crystals — works indefinitely.

Gut-load feeding maximizes nutritional value right before the roaches go to your reptile. For 24-48 hours beforehand, switch to high-value foods: dark leafy greens (collard, mustard), orange vegetables (squash, sweet potato, carrots), and a little fruit. This loads the roach with vitamins and calcium at the moment your animal eats it.

When you order discoids from All Angles Creatures, they arrive already gut-loaded with premium produce. If you're holding them more than a day or two, keep the gut loading going to maintain peak value.

How much to feed

Overfeeding the roaches themselves isn't really a risk — they self-regulate. The bigger mistake is over-offering fresh food, which leaves produce rotting and attracts fruit flies or mold.

A good rule: offer a piece of produce about the size of a credit card per 50-100 roaches. Gone in a few hours? Offer a bit more. Still sitting after 24 hours? Offer less.

Water: the most important part of the diet

Dehydration kills more feeder roaches than anything else, especially nymphs. Always provide polymer water crystals as the primary hydration source. Never use an open water dish — nymphs crawl in and drown.

Fresh produce supplements hydration but shouldn't be the only water source. Water crystals are cheap, safe, and last for days. They're the single most important supply in the bin. For a deeper dive on why dehydration is the #1 colony killer and how to dial in temperature alongside hydration, see my full discoid roach care guide. The University of Florida's entomology resources are a solid background read on Blaberus biology if you want to go deeper (UF/IFAS Entomology).

Feed your roaches well and they'll feed your reptiles even better. It's the simplest nutrition hack in the hobby.

Curious how this well-fed staple compares to the alternatives? See discoid roaches vs crickets and discoid roaches vs mealworms.