Uncle Ireland produces more than 1 million snails a year and wholesales them to Greece.
Peter Monaghan, a farmer in Cavanshire, Ireland, makes more money per acre of land than most farmers do per acre of land, as he costs more than 4.5 euros per kilogram of snails.
He produces 1.2 million native Irish snails Hélix Aspersa Muller (Petit Gris) a year, equivalent to around 10 tonnes, and wholesales them to Greece.
Peter grew up on a small 20-acre farm in Lisduff, Virginia, Cavan and wanted to add value to the family farm, so after considering his options, he decided to try snail farming.
"I've always been a bit of a family lover, starting to build my own house at the age of 17, 20 yards from the farm," said Peter, a former transportation manager.
"My father died when I was 21, so I was more involved in the farm and a few years later I decided I wanted to change our farming system."
"Dad has always been interested in quality cows, but I decided to try other stronger breeds, such as the Belgian Blue Cow."
"I tried them out for a few years and found that before they reached 350 kilograms, I sold them as weaned cows for the best returns. If I keep them above 400 kilograms, I still get the same price, so there's no point in holding them before they get close to the 350kg mark," Peter said. Last year, his weaned cows averaged between €4.75 and €5.15 per kilogram.
To make better use of the land he owned and add further value, Peter studied other farming methods and then chose snail farming, which he initially thought was too good to earn "good and a little unreal".
"I did a lot of research and initially wanted to engage in earthworm farming, but the investment was quite high and there seemed to be too many pitfalls, so I decided to give it up."
"Raising snails seems to meet all the conditions. Every farming system or business has its strengths and weaknesses, and I try to find the shortcomings of snail farming, but to be honest, I can't find any of them," he said. "It's unbelievably good."
In 2017, Peter ordered 700,000 baby snails at a snail farm in Carlow, after gathering as much knowledge as he could about raising snails and attending a private lesson and Teagasc lesson.
"I knew I could do all the research in the world, but I would never learn unless I tried it myself," he said. ”
Five years on, Peter produces 1.2 million snails a year, equivalent to about 10 tons.
In the beginning, Peter erected a 6× 30-foot compound tunnel, set up 20 tables, each with 40,000 snails, and planted feed rape on it as feed and breeding ground for snails. He added a feeding table to the top of each table, where he could sprinkle calcium-rich, high-energy snail food and cover them with a "curtain" net. Since then, he has built a larger compound tunnel to meet its growing numbers.
"I planted feed canola in March and the snails arrived in April. Feed rapeseed is very similar to rapeseed. ”
The snails stayed in the first tunnel from April until the end of May. Every night, when the sun went down, I would go into the tunnel and spray them with very light water with water spray," Peter said.
"It's really magical, the moment the water starts to fall gently, you can hear the snails coming out to feed."
Peter's snails were then moved to an acre of field, planted with more feed canola, fenced with galvanized steel, and a foot deep into the ground, keeping the snails inside and keeping predators out. They stayed there until September.
The area is further protected by a kind of "windproof" net and a four-strand electric fence that does not harm snails but emits enough electric shocks to prevent them from escaping.
"I divided the land into 10 paddocks, each containing about 100,000 snails. Every paddock has feeding boards and I feed snails 50-75 kilograms of feed every night," Peter said.
"Around 8 or 9 p.m., the sprinkler in the field starts and the snails immediately come out to eat. It's an amazing sight. ”
At the end of September, Inis Escargot began harvesting snails, which lasted about six weeks.
"I pack snails in buckets. It takes 30 to 40 minutes to fill a bucket of 15kg snails," Peter said.
"The ideal weight for snails is 10-12 grams. It's like preparing a cow to go to a supermarket or factory, they need to reach a certain weight, but not more than that weight. ”
Once the snails are collected from the ground, they are taken to another tunnel with a "purification table".
"The snails are placed on a purification table and left there for 7-10 days without eating or drinking. During this time, they will clean themselves up, dry their bodies, and their bodies will be induced to re-enter hibernation. Peter said.
"Once they're asleep, they can be packed in 7-kilogram mesh bags, similar to those used for onions, and then they can be shipped around the world."
Peter has so far focused on wholesale snails, and while the money is well earned, he says his profits will "quadruple" if he starts supplying snails directly.
"Trucks came to collect snails and take them to processing plants in Greece. They never wake up from hibernation, and they are put into water that is gradually heated to a boiling point for processing. ”
"This has proven to be a very humane way of processing because they don't feel any pain."
"If it is wholesale, snails can currently sell for 4.5 euros per kilogram, the specific price depends on the quality, if you sell directly to restaurants, the price can easily quadruple."
"I just haven't invested time and energy in this yet, but it's something I'll explore in the near future."
Peter says that when he first started, there was very little information about snail farming in Ireland, so he had to collect most of his research materials from Europe and even travel to Spain.
He has now decided to start his own farm, offering a unique training facility for others interested in entering the snail farming industry.
"I will open a new training institution in the farm center, and from June to September, I will be there to provide advice."
"People can come and visit snails, polyethylene tunnels and fields and ask practical questions," Peter said. ”
"When I first started, I had no one to consult and I had a lot of questions, from what I should feed them to what type of wire I needed."
"Now, I'm going to be able to help other people who want to diversify in the same way I did." I've booked half of the courses and there's more consultation because I think people are starting to realize how good snail farming is. ”