By the time it is ready for consumption, a typical casu marzu contains thousands of larvae.

WSJ: NattO, Maggot Cheese and Other Food That May Repel

My favorite fermented challenge, because I'm a cheese lover but am mortally repulsed by worms, is casu marzu.

WSJ: NattO, Maggot Cheese and Other Food That May Repel

Casu marzu is a sheep cheese popular on the Italian island of Sardinia.

WSJ: NattO, Maggot Cheese and Other Food That May Repel

And casu marzu, the pungent cheese famous for visibly containing tiny maggots.

BBC: Sardinia, land and sea

Locals consider it unsafe to eat casu marzu once the larvae have died, so it is served while the translucent white worms, about one-third of an inch long, are still squiggling.

WSJ: NattO, Maggot Cheese and Other Food That May Repel