The very idea of touching it disgusts many people. However, like every Christmas, several thousand French people go to enjoy snails with their families. Stuffed with parsley, cooked Provençal style, in a casserole or in puff pastry… Gastropods, which whatever one thinks of them, constitute an emblematic dish of French gastronomy, are mainly sold at this time of year.
“It’s our unmissable commercial meeting,” confirms Carole Milan, breeder in Savoie and co-president of the national federation of helicopter operators [les éleveurs d’escargots]. Nearly 50% of production is for the end-of-year holidays, even if we try to demonstrate that we can eat snails every month for pleasure. » “I work fresh so I sell well throughout the year. But Christmas is obviously a highlight. There are clients that we only see once, and that’s when,” reports Manuel Lenouvel, breeder of the Snails from Saint-Jean-de-Boiseaunear Nantes.
Burgundy snails come from abroad
Snail consumption is stable and the French are among the biggest eaters in the world, along with the Spanish and the Portuguese. National production brings together around 400 helical farms, installed throughout the country, particularly in the Auvergne-Rhônes-Alpes region. However, it weighs almost nothing compared to imports: 90% of snails sold in France come from abroad! Eastern European countries, Turkey and even Indonesia being the main exporters.
“This situation is very little known to the general public,” insists Carole Milan. We import 11,000 and 14,000 tonnes of snail meat per year, which are often transformed in France by manufacturers. These are essentially so-called Burgundy snails, which have nothing to do with Burgundy. They often come from wild collection and not from breeding. In France, the collection of Burgundy snails is very regulated in order to protect the species. And it is forbidden to trade in it. »
French producers therefore mainly market “gros gris” and “petits gris” from another species, thehelix aspersa. These are raised outdoors or in greenhouses, fed on cereals, clover and grasses. “The farmed snail is selected, its flesh is more tender. Connoisseurs are not mistaken,” says Carole Milan, who “invites customers to read the labels and buy locally.”
“A great job that offers a lot of diversity”
However, the French sector, including the structure is recent, is currently unable to gain significant market share. “We can do much better because the consumers are there, including the younger generations who are sensitive to local eating,” the co-president of the federation is convinced. But it won’t happen overnight. To develop, we need to better train helicopter farmers, consolidate existing farms and increase the number of installations. »
The new arrivals are often people in retraining attracted by the potential of the sector. Manuel Lenouvel knows a thing or two about it. After ten years of activity, this former photographer is in the process of passing on his Nantes breeding to a former seasonal worker, due to a geographical move. “It’s a great job that offers a lot of autonomy and diversity since most breeders also do the cooking and selling themselves,” he believes. It is also an agricultural profession that requires little land and buildings and is therefore financially accessible. On the other hand, it is a profession demanding in terms of volume of work. »
Global warming is also a new fact that questions the profession. Snails are suffering from the heat and lack of water, which has already contributed to reducing the volumes collected abroad for two years. Some French farms have also suffered significant losses during heatwaves. “We need to move forward in the field of genetic research to improve our performance. We need the support of the authorities as much as we do of consumers,” notes Carole Milan.
Snail meat, whose taste is not very pronounced, has the reputation of being very low in fat and rich in protein. Snail slime is increasingly used in cosmetics.