Wangui Waweru has been breeding and farming snails since 2018, starting with 37 snails. This number has grown over the years.

Her first encounter with snails was when she was on a business trip in Uganda, buying clothes to sell back home.

As fate would have it, she met the person who introduced her to snails.

On a bus to Kenya, Wangui was sitting next to a Cameroonian man.

Ms Wangui Waweru at her farm in Lanet.

Photo credit: WINNIE KIMANI| MTAA WANGU

As they chatted, the man offered to share his meal with her and she accepted.
Once they had finished eating, the man turned to Wangui to ask if she liked the food.

The man giggled to her saying, "The snail meat is so sweet."

"I was confused and tried to vomit but to no avail. With mixed reactions, I decided to be quiet for the rest of the trip. I was furious and approached the man to confirm that what I had eaten was indeed snail meat. He explained to me that snail meat is a delicacy among the people of West Africa," recalls Wangui.

She was intrigued and wanted to find out more about snails.

Wangui then travelled to Cameroon, Rwanda and Ghana to visit snail farms.

In 2020, Wangui obtained her first permit from Senior Warden Catherine Wambani, where she bred 4,700 snails.

However, being a snail farmer has brought her negative criticism.

She says she has been mocked and called a "witch" for rearing more than 1000 snails.

"My snails are organic domestic snails and not the poached wild ones. These two types taste different. I feed them potassium, calcium, iron, vitamins and water, and avoid giving them protein and salts as this shortens their lives," she explains.

Wangui keeps her snails in eight pens that she has built.

Wangui feeds her snails at her farm in Lanet.

Photo credit: WINNIE KIMANI| MTAA WANGU

Every two days she sprinkles the pens with water to make sure the snails don't stay in a dry place, because they need a moist place to survive.

"I wash my snails every two weeks to prevent diseases."

Snails, which are hermaphrodites', lay 400 eggs each, one kilogram of eggs going for Sh196,000, hence the belief that snails are only for millionaires and billionaires.

Her customers are mostly Italians, West Africans, Germans, Mexicans, Japanese and some Europeans.

Snail meat, she says, is very nutritious, rich in vitamins B12, B13 and B16, which are rare in most meats.

Snail mucus is also used in skin care products to treat acne.

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I have been called a 'witch' for rearing snails

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Winnie Kimani