Literature review to all my seminar attendees

I told you of how our former president has spotted a money making machine in snail farming,now i i have something even worse .South Africa is embarking on a gigantic snail farmland that is 100% bigger than Obasanjo snail farm .

Snail Farm - Excellent Investment Opportunity
Category: Agriculture / Farming

Size: 19,500 m2

Key features:

• Production of eggs / baby snails for breeders
• Production of snails for the market
• Using the most efficient French experience
• Accent on ecological farming
• Opportunity for closed cycle production


Concept:

Snail Farm – 'Helix Aspersa M_M' is designed to meet the needs of the snail breeders in the country and Europe.
It is the biggest farm in its kind in Bulgaria. It has used a French "know how" and French equipment by the project development according to the standards and the ambitious aims. Situated on 19,500 m2 of land, this manufacture development has a total build-up area of more than 2,000 m2, including local heating working on solid fuel, refrigerator cell, stores, producing halls, generator. There are also 5,000 m2 covered and 2,000 m2 open breeding parks. The whole Snail Farm is supplied with local water drilling.

Location:

Snail Farm – 'Helix Aspersa M_M' is located in the Eastern Lowlands of the 'Stara Planina' Mountain, on 40 km from Nessebar Town and the Black Sea Coast (coordinates by Google earth – Latitude: 42°47'32.66"N and Longitude: 27°20'12.02"E). It is on the lower end of the Preobradzentsi Village, Burgas District. There are direct road accesses to the coast and inland.

Opportunities:

Snail Farm – 'Helix Aspersa M_M' offers the possibility to join the attractive production of dainty foods. It production halls can work whole year in '2 months' producing cycles. The breeding parks ensure material for the reproduction and the market. There is also an architecture planning for snail processing workshop to the farm.

In connection with the concept of this project it can provide also the 'know-how' to the coming breeders in form of teaching-working courses.

For you snail lovers, on a previous post we talked about snails as pets. That’s right, as home pets as fish, dogs and cats.

One special kind of snails are the Achatina Fullic or African Giant Snails. These are the biggest snails on Earth, when they are babies they only have 0.5 inches, but they can reach up to 12 inches and weight 2.2 pounds in their adulthood.

Original from Africa, these large beauties can be found almost anywhere since the times of World War II when they were used as canned food. Just imagine animals that eat almost anything and grow large in length and weight so fast.

But it is their big size what makes them a hard to raise as pets: all the food it has to eat, their massive reproduction (300 to 500 eggs!), their fast growth, their destructive potential (especially for agriculture), and that they can carry the parasite that causes meningitis. But still, very impressive animals, only for truly dedicated snail lovers.

Please note, African Giant Land Snails are illegal in the U.S. (but not in other countries).

Dangerous aquarium snails: how to get rid of them
As a fish breeder you obviously want your aquarium free predating snails. However, you not necessarily have to get rid of them all; you can always keep a few of them to give life and variety to the aquarium environment.

Two of the first things you must take away from your aquarium are dead snails. They are not beneficial at all, they pollute the environment. Likewise, poisoning products damage plants and the rest of aquatic creatures, so you better do not use whatsoever.

One of the best solutions to clean your aquarium is getting an animal that mainly eats sea invertebrates, as Clown loach, which only eats mollusk eggs and leaves the plants untouched.

Clown loach can live for over 22 years! So you can consider it a good long-time investment. But if you want something cheap –I mean really cheap- you can place on a lettuce leaf at night. In just 30 minutes you will be stunned by the loads of snails gathering around the lettuce.

In addition to this, you can prevent the massive snail reproduction by is removing the jelly layer covering the leaves were snail eggs lay on. It is a leg work, but it is easy and priceless.

Finally, keep in mind that although these and other techniques help eliminate dangerous snails from aquariums, the main reason of snail overpopulation is overfeeding. Therefore, if you regularly clean your aquarium (focusing on the rests of food on the bottom) you can save yourself a great deal of work and trouble.
How to choose aquarium snails
On a previous post I talked to you about the role of aquarium snails, now I am going to teach you how to choose good team mates for your fish aquarium that will help improve the water environment instead of wreaking havoc.

Apple snail in aquarium
These are good choices of snail species for your fish aquarium:
Apple snails (Ampullariidae family): Apple snail is the most sought-after variety of this family because of its beautiful and eye-catching orange color. Though beautiful and goof for your fish aquarium, you have to raise it in a separate environment from the other sea animals because if you let them reproduce in large quantities they will end up turning to plants to survive.

Ramshorn snails (Tropidiscus planorbis): it has a dark red shell and measures just 5mm. It is a very peaceful snail and the great news: it eats detritus and wastes, no plants.

Ghost shrimp (Natantia gen sp): these handsome snails are the favorites of aquarium aficionados; it has very little possibilities of becoming a plague. Though, they can reproduce easily, so you better raise them in a separate place so their baby snails can be safe from the aquarium inhabitants. They love eating the rests that sit at the bottom of the aquarium.

Mystery snails (Pomacea Bridgesii): I call it this the cleanser because it does the whole cleaning job, and he does it fast and thoroughly. This buddy only eats algae, no other vegetal unless it is covered by algae. Definitely a must-have.

What type of snails do you have in your aquariums?
Aquarium snails, bad or good?
I recently went to a pet store and while checking on the fish aquariums I noticed some cutie little snails in them that naturally made me wonder, why are they in there?
I always thought aquarium snails presence was harmful since they are plant predators, and plants are necessary to keep nitrogen in the right level to maintain water in good condition and provide enough oxygen to fish. Moreover, aquarium plants ensure the precise dose of CO2 and right lightning.
From this, you can naturally deduce that snails must be taken away immediately. However, NOT ALL snail species are harmful for an aquarium; in fact, they can be beneficial to keep it in good condition. Therefore, we have to learn how to tell good snail from bad snails.

How to indentify good aquarium snails from bad snails
1. Snail classification: identify which type of snails you have in your aquarium.
2. Holes in leaves: check if your aquarium plants have any holes.
3. Snails number: you know you have too many snails when the aquarium is visibly destroyed. You should proceed to remove them before they form a plague.
4. Snail shell: look if they have these characteristics:
1.

a) Oval shell: it is called Lymnaea stagnalis and is one of the most dangerous nails. It spends most the day devouring plants. Be careful, they reproduce themselves quite quickly.
• b) Swirl shell: easily confused with a conch, it is known as Malaysian trumpet snail. When you have just a few of them they do not represent any major danger, since they help cleanse and refresh the fish aquarium. When they grow in large numbers, they will need more plants and they will be hard to detect, since they spent most of the day under soil.
The biggest snail on Earth

For you snail lovers, on a previous post we talked about snails as pets. That’s right, as home pets as fish, dogs and cats.

One special kind of snails are the Achatina Fullic or African Giant Snails. These are the biggest snails on Earth, when they are babies they only have 0.5 inches, but they can reach up to 12 inches and weight 2.2 pounds in their adulthood.

Original from Africa, these large beauties can be found almost anywhere since the times of World War II when they were used as canned food. Just imagine animals that eat almost anything and grow large in length and weight so fast.

But it is their big size what makes them a hard to raise as pets: all the food it has to eat, their massive reproduction (300 to 500 eggs!), their fast growth, their destructive potential (especially for agriculture), and that they can carry the parasite that causes meningitis. But still, very impressive animals, only for truly dedicated snail lovers.

Please note, African Giant Land Snails are illegal in the U.S. (but not in other countries).
HAVING SNAILS AS ADORABLE PETS
Snails can be adorable pets (II)
Snails are not only nice decoration for the fishbowl; they can also be adorable pets that can live alone or with other animals.

There are two types of snails, that due to their differences, each kind has a particular care.

Water snails
• Also known as conches, water snails are small and have eye-catching colors (they present different shades of green and yellow).
• They can live alone or with other small sea animals in a fishbowl. You better leave 8 inches free of water, since they lay their eggs in the dry areas.
• For hygiene reasons, when changing the fishbowl water add chlorine tablets to prevent diseases.
• You can get them pet stores for $1 each.
Terrestrial snails
• Mostly known as escargot, these snails present a brown or coffee-like color and they can reach up to 10 inches (as the ones in Ecuador). Their feeding is mostly vegetal; they eat lettuce, papaya leaves, and any other edible leaf.
• The best place to have soil snails is a delimited place in your garden or a humid place with compost so they can comfortably lay their eggs on.
• You can get them pet stores for $2 each.
•
DISCOVERED

SOUTH AFRICA’S NEW “GOLD MINE’”[SNAIL FARM PROJECT]

SOUTH AFRICA IS PALNNING TO TURN THE WHOLE EATH TO A SNAIL PLANET.
By JOSEPH ERINLE

South Africa's first snail farm is due to be opened in Saldanha Bay next year. The pilot Heliciculture farm is expected to create at least 200 direct jobs and generate an annual turnover of R28,5-million.

Bertie Hechter, senior project manager for the Western Cape's department of social development, said the farm would add considerable value to the provincial economy. The development forms part of the department's poverty-eradication programme.

"I applaud the courage of the MEC (for Social Development, Kholeka Mqulwana) to take this bold step."


http://www.planetsnail.blogspot.com

Mqulwana's spokesperson, Simphiwe Xako, said the snail farm was one of several projects planned by the department to build social capital in the province.

The department this week called for expressions of interest from specialists to carry out a feasibility study for an auditing system for the farm. Hechter said the department has been working on plans for a snail farm since 1998.
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A joint partnership agreement has been signed with world's third largest snail farm. It is in France.

Hechter said the Saldanha Bay farm would be the first where snails would be bred in tunnels or batteries throughout the year. It will have 35 million snails at a time when in full production.

Hechter said the farm would breed the indigenous common brown snail, helix aspersa.

Most of the snails would be exported.He said there was a shortage of 40-48 000 tons of snails for the international market.

France alone consumed 20 000 tons of snails in December and January. This strong demand meant South Africa could export its snails at four or five times more than the local price.

Hechter said, while it would cost R27-million to set up the farm, the profitability of the venture had been verified. The province had already spent R3-million to research the viability of the farm.

He said the province had signed an agreement with the Saldanha municipality to release the land needed for the farm at a preferential rate.

Hechter said besides the culinary uses for the "little critters we step on", there were also medical benefits. Snails are cholesterol-free, contain nine minerals and produce anti-bacterial mucous.

How to control snails in your garden
Slugs and Snails are the biggest threat to our garden’s productivity. One of the best ways I have found to keep their population down is to go into the garden after dusk and try to catch them at it with a torch. I have been doing this for a while now, storing them in a empty jam jar and giving them to the chickens in the morning.
I was up late one night last week when it started to rain. Slugs and snails love the rain so I though I would go out and have a look for some. I hunted around the back garden for a while and found quite a good lot of them, then I though I would check the front garden. We have nothing growing there but I was thinking more about how much the chickens love them. Now the council have still not taken away the garden rubbish from about a 2 months ago and our front garden is beginning to resemble a giant compost heap. Although this is very ugly, that night I discovered that it is a haven for snails. I must have spent about an hour rummaging though decomposing plants with a torch and if any of the neighbours saw me I would not have blamed them for phoning the police. I must have looked quite strange. But, the police did not show up and managed to find about 200 snails of various sizes. A lot more than I had anticipated. I kept them in a jug with cling film over the top to keep them in.
The next day I went to the garden to feed them to the chickens and they were loving it. I think the actual snail is a good source of protein which is especially good for the one which we are fattening to eat and the shells are good for them too as they are a source of calcium which strengthens their egg’s shells.
They take a minute or two to eat each snail as they have to peck through the shell and after about 10 snails I was beginning to think I should go inside and do some proper work. But I had 190 snails to go through! I did not want to just leave them in the run for the chickens to eat as I was starting to suspect that that quantity might be too much for them in one day and if just a handful had escaped the chicken run then my runner beans would have been gone in seconds. So I grabbed a big plastic box and put them in there with some leaves and sticks to munch on. I am hoping that i might have created a little snail farm from which I will be able to take out a few snails a day for the chickens. Hopefully I will be able to create an environment in there where they will be able to breed giving the chickens a perpetual supply of protein and calcium. We’ll see.