Some 15km from Nakuru Wangui Waweru works on his farm on which she produces a unique delicacy that would have many Kenyans turn up their noses. As Wangui checks her snail farming business, she is optimistic that the planned upgrade of the Lanet Airstrip will open her to the larger export market.
Wangui says she got interested in rearing snails as a business after visiting Kisumu 13 years ago. “Marketing my farm produce at the time was one of the hardest things I experienced as a farmer. I spent sleepless nights thinking about cost and where to sell since most farmers harvest their farm produce at the same time,” she recalls.
During her hustles, Wangui visited a snail farmer who shared some tips on rearing snails as well as the potential markets. “The lady took me to the farm where she had bought them and I immediately developed an interest in rearing the snails,” she recalls.
Back in Nakuru Wangui decided to give snail farming a try. She realised that she needed to be empowered and enrolled for a course at the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) training institute.
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With the knowledge, Wangui set up a greenhouse to breed the slimy ‘delicacy’. She pumped Ksh30,000 into the venture from her savings to buy greenhouse polythene, wire mesh and 100 plastic basins. She then secured a permit from the Kenya Wildlife Service at Ksh1,500 and started off in business.
The snail farm — a 10m-by-10m greenhouse — stands conspicuously. The snail house has been partitioned into four and each room contains plastic basins covered with fine wire mesh to keep predators at bay.
She says her biggest customers in Kenya are expatriates from Europe, Asia and West Africa who, unlike native Kenyans, have developed a taste for what locals consider unpalatable. Snails, according to nutritionists, provide healthy meat high in protein and very low in cholesterol.
Wangui says the molluscs contain 15% proteins, 2.4% fat and 80% water. In addition, they are rich in fatty acids, calcium, iron, selenium, magnesium and vitamins E, A, K and B12.
Home of Large Snails
Africa is home to the largest species of snails in the world, the Giant African land snail. Wangui says snails are easy to keep. “When you target the right market and customers, snail farming can be a very rewarding business,” she notes.
The Giant African snail thrives in hot and humid environments like Lanet, Wangui’s home on the outskirts of Nakuru City. From research she has lots of information on snails. For instance, a snail can live up to 10 years if well bred and and average of 5-7 years.
Wangui, a mother of three, keeps 4,500 snails of the Giant African land variety (Achatinide fulica), which she sells at between Ksh2,000 to Ksh3,000 per kilo. On average, she sells 30 kilograms of the slimy creatures per month.
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The farmer explains that snails are a common delicacy among communities in West Africa and she has established a niche market among Ghanaians, Cameroonians, Nigerians, Senegalese, Sierra Leonians and the Togolese, South Americans and Asians in living in Kenya.
The Kenya Wildlife Conservation and Management Act 2013 allows communities to keep animals such as snails, ostriches, snakes and crocodiles. Before licensing, the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) sends a research team to access the facility and carries out regular assessments.
Snail meat is cool, anyone?
Before selling snails for consumption in hotels or for the export market, one has to be certified. In addition, farmers have to make quarterly reports to KWS. She feeds the slimy creatures on vegetables like cabbages and fruit pieces, particularly watermelons. The vegetables should preferably be organic. The creatures also require plenty of water and calcium to strengthen their shells.
“Snail meat is very safe as the moist soil in which they remained buried beneath during the day to stay safe from predators is sterilised to avoid contam¡nation or bacterial infect¡ons.
It has very rich qualities and tastes like gizzard. It is easy to prepare. One needs to boil it for five minutes to get rid of the mucus. Once boiled, you can fry it with tomatoes and onions.
“To enhance food security, Kenyans need to diversify their choice of foods. Snails are plentiful in counties where people are either starving or malnourished,” Wangui says.
Giant African land snails are hermaphrodite, which means that they have the reproductive organs for both male and female. A snail produces 300 to 500 eggs in three months, which hatch after 11 to 15 days, enabling one to increase their population faster.
According to Wangui, snails mature after six months. They grow big, but after another six months, their growth stagnates again.
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Wangui offers that snails are quite vulnerable to predators such as lizards, caterpillars, rats, ground beetles, termites and spiders. Flies on the other hand lay eggs and the maggots end up eating the snails.
Apart from consumption, Wangui explains that snails are a good skin treatment regime as the slime they produce, known as mucin, is used to produce skin care products. Snail mucin contains antioxidants that may help reduce signs of aging like wrinkles, uneven skin tone and sagging.
Studies indicate that snail mucin helps with skin regeneration and protects against damaging free radicals. Snail mucin also hydrates, boosts collagen production, heals wòunds and even soothes irritation. ( KNA Report / Jane Ngugi and Jane Wambui )
