Dairy, Alcohol & Seafood Sector, Bord Bia - Irish Food Board
Following the recent growth in snail farms in Ireland, Bord Bia undertook research into the Irish and international market for this sector including an analysis of the global snail markets, routes to market and snail products.
There are now nearly 30 snail farms in Ireland, all in their first years and all are relatively small scale (1 acre or less). These farms produce the Helix Aspersa Muller snail (aka Petit Gris in France and Bobe in Spain). The yield in 2017 was disappointing at less than 10 tonnes, but the quality of snails and organization of the main farming group received strong feedback from international buyers.
The global snail market was worth approx $154M (43k tones) in 2016 at wholesale prices and has seen growth of $42M (or 13%) from 2007 to 2016 (UN data). The 6 biggest value added (prepared) importers of snails in descending order are: France, USA, Japan, Canada, Germany and Belgium.
France is by far the most significant snail market, importing $48M worth of snails and exporting €26M. France imports 90-95% of the snails that it consumes – and most are picked in the wild in eastern European markets (Romania is no. 1)
Snails in France are a very traditional market, eaten mostly during the Christmas festival period and almost always cooked in their shells with garlic butter and herbs. 95% of consumption is the Burgundy snail (Helix Pomatia) – whilst the Petit Gris only makes up 1.5% of the market. In retail, snails are mainly sold frozen and stuffed (55% of the market) or otherwise in tins of snail flesh (ambient) alongside empty shells, which are later stuffed. Grocery retail prices range from €40-€60 per Kg.
Spain and Italy are also large snail consumption markets. Spain imports $8M worth of snails per annum – at very low prices and predominantly from Morocco. Snail consumption is focused in the north of Spain and the snails are used in a variety of dishes. Italy imports €5M worth of snails per annum mainly from Tunisia and Algeria.
Besides consuming the flesh, snails are also increasingly used in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. Also, snail caviar, a pearly white colour, is sold for eating at very high prices.
Along with the growing list of health benefits of eating snails, the future of the snail market looks strong. The challenge in Ireland is to create the right farming conditions for sustainable and profitable yields.