Large-scale commercial snail farms are set to be rolled out across the island based on the Cherasco Method.
Cahill Irish Snails Limited is an Irish company based in Kells, Co. Meath. It has formed a partnership with the Istituto Internazionale di Elicicoltura Cherasco to introduce on an exclusive basis the Cherasco Method of snail farming to the island of Ireland.
Attractive returns
The Cherasco Method of snail farming offers very attractive returns compared with the wider agricultural sector here in Ireland. It is the world-leading commercial farming system for snail production. Based on an outdoor model, it is well suited to the climate in Ireland.
Cahill Irish Snails provides farmers with long-term supply agreements for their entire production which the company acquires on rewarding contracts.
In addition, partnered with the market-leading processor of snails based in Italy, the company has opened up a mature and growing market now for Irish Cherasco certified snails. It requires a supply base here in Ireland of several thousand acres.
Natural Migration is the principle introduced in the breeding method and, due to its substantial impact, it represents a real revolution compared to the other methods used in the past.
The other systems can damage small developing snails as the transfer phase is a very delicate moment, because it had to take place in a defined period of time. Also it meant using the right precautions to not damage the small snails, extremely tiring and stressful, as well as being expensive due to the need to use additional manpower.
The application of this system to the breeding methodology also has the advantage of respecting the habitat and the snail growth process.
This aspect has a very important value: In the concept of a natural process, Cahill Irish Snails takes a further step forward and present the Cherasco Method as the only system in the market which combines an uncompromising green philosophy, far removed from artificial methods that practice force-feeding snails with powders and feed.
Typical snail farm using the Cherasco Method; in Ireland bird netting will be required to protect the snails
Setting up
Green field sites are required to start the snail farm as existing snail farms are not considered.
Snail farms of 5ac+ in size starting off with potential to expand further are required and initial enquiries must be made through Cahill Irish Snails’ website.
Additional land would be required to grow vegetables for feed. Soil analysis is the first very important step in determining suitability.
The company looks for information on pH levels etc. and in addition calcium carbonate levels and soil composition in % terms for clay, sand and lime. Training is provided to successful applicants as they progress in setting up their farms.
The farms outer perimeter is constructed to provide a barrier against natural predators (rats and mice) leaving the farm itself to be set out in rows of snail pens, separated by usually 1.5m pathways and wider where larger machinery may pass.
Bird netting would be required also to protect the snails.
A Cherasco Method farm with each pen having separate zones for breeding and fattening
48 years of activity
The Istituto Internazionale di Elicicoltura Cherasco has 48 years of activity this year.
Due to the reduced need for specific machinery and the limited financial investment, heliciculture has become a widespread activity capable of increasing the farmer’s income.
It offers many the possibility to escape in some way from the traditional unprofitable intensive farming activities and to work in close contact with nature.
From the basic enclosures of the breeders and growers of the 50s through to the 70s, through tests and experiments carried out in the most different climatic conditions, the Istituto has come to the complete biological breeding solution.
The research was refined: on a purely scientific basis; on the species; on the genetic correlations; on the size; on the most rational and correct diet; on the ideal growing environment – and resulted in the Cherasco Method.
The global snail market was worth about $1 billion in 2019 and it is growing at 4.5% per annum, so price levels are being maintained.
Snails are a very digestible food and extremely rich in proteins and minerals. This is one of the reasons snails represent the ideal meal for children, the elderly and convalescents.
The snails’ diet full of good quality vegetables, as expert breeders ensure, gives to the snails an elevated amount of minerals, which it derives from the eaten plants. In particular, they are rich in calcium, phosphor, magnesium, potassium, iron and copper.
The Cherasco Method means snails are bred in the open-air, protected from the suns’ rays by vegetation within their habitat and fed with good vegetables, the absence of pesticides and chemical substances. In this way, snails assume a similar taste to the eaten vegetables.
Cahill Irish Snails deals exclusively with Helix snails being then most popular for commercial purposes.
‘Optimal commercial farming system’
Ireland is an ideal location to start a Cherasco Method snail breeding business for different reasons, principally the climate.
Making a profit from snail farming can be difficult due to lack of experience due to its recent arrival in Ireland. The climate and the general conditions of the plant site contribute to the result.
Careful calculations and assessments are required of soil and location and must respond to a prudent approach.
The Cherasco Method through decades of research has developed the optimal commercial farming system to formulate the business plan to minimise the risks referred to above and optimise the return for the farmer.
Edmond Cahill is the managing director of Cahill Irish Snails Limited, located at Riverbank, Kells Business Park, Kells, Co. Meath. For more information, contact: [email protected].
Alternatively, Cahill Irish Snails invites you to review its website for further information, by simply clicking here
