By Mish Whalen

Snail breeding has helped Bulgarian farmers to survive during hard economic

times due to a soaring European appetite for the tasty little treats, AP reports.

These Helix Aspersa Maxima snails were photographed at snail farm in a Bulgarian

village on Aug. 11.

A Snail Farm?Northeast Magazine - December 2003

While visiting Provence a few years ago we met a man with several claims to fame. Yves Rousset-Rouand, owner of an excellent winery Domaine del la Citadelle is also the mayor of Menerbes, a picturesque hill town in the Luberon region of Provence. He owns perhaps the largest corkscrew collection in the world and he produced the two famous x rated films of the 60’s, "Emmanuelle" and "The Story of O". Like most Frenchman he’s passionate about his local wine and food and began talking about escargot, a favorite national dish. While tasting his wines, he expounded about the local snail farms in this region. We thought he must be joking. But then we had never thought about how snails are harvested. We assumed that snails were quite natural creatures picked wild from the land. So, in a farm, are the snails allowed to run free, then rounded up and corralled before being processed? And if one escaped just how far could that snail go? Such concerns peeked our interest. We were intrigued to say the least. 

An enthusiastic Yves offered to show us, and on what felt like a wild goose chase through the twisting dusty roads of the Luberon valley we raced at a bolting rabbit's pace in search of a snail farm. Eventually, in the middle of nowhere, we pulled off the road into a large field. Yves proudly turned towards this seemingly empty space and said, “This is an escargot farm!”

Upon closer inspection we saw that about a quarter of an acre was indeed fenced off. As snails are not known for their jumping skills there was just a low wire fence. Inside this corralled space were open wooden slatted crate-like structures. We could see a few snails, but hidden on the dark underside of the slats, thousands upon thousands of escargot quietly wandered and intermingled while munching on specially planted herbs and bran. 

If you ever wondered how these snails finally end up in the escargot dish, it’s not just about collecting a few random snails and putting them in the pot.  The farmer explained that there’s an elaborate preparation procedure involving fattening, enforced fasting and purging before the humble gastropod is ready for the table. 

But enough said, because snails are one of our favorite starters. While Bob’s mother protected him from such foreign cuisines - he was in his twenties before being exposed to such delights - Pru’s transformation from finicky eater to culinary adventurer occurred at the tender age of four. It was a pivotal moment.  While traveling Europe with her parents and sister they stopped at a small French bistro. Her parents each ordered a plate of escargot. And as it was their responsibility to at least expose them to the native cuisine, they offered them each a snail thinking they wouldn't like it. But oh boy, were they wrong! They loved them and from then on demanded plates of there own.

A restaurant dish at home

We always thought that it would take many years of apprenticeship in the bowels of a French kitchen to make Escargot Bourguignonne. Consequently for many years we never made it at home but would always order it in restaurants.

The reality is that it is an easy dish to make. Just read the instructions on the back of a can of escargot! The ease of preparing the escargot should embarrass any high falutin’ French restaurant because it’s as straightforward as draining, heating and serving. The exquisite sauce is also easy to make. The ingredients are simply butter, garlic and parsley with sometimes the addition of lemon and shallots. In 10 minutes you'll be indulging in one of France’s seminal dishes.

Prudence & Bob's Escargots Bourguignonne

Serves 2 (6 snails each)

Most restaurants swim escargot in far too much butter - in this recipe we cut back on oil compensating with a lot of garlic and parsley.

1 can containing 12 escargot, drained and rinsed3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened2 medium cloves garlic, minced2 teaspoons minced shallot or scallion (optional)1/2 teaspoon kosher salt3 tablespoons very finely minced parsley2 tablespoons dry white wine

With the back of a spoon mix together the butter, garlic, shallot, salt and parsley making a paste. Add 1/2 teaspoon of white wine in each indentation in the escargot plate. Place one escargot in each indentation and top each escargot with equal

amounts of the butter paste. Place the escargot dish in a pre-heated 400 degree oven for 10 minutes or until the butter is melted and bubbling. Serve hot with lots of good crusty bread to soak up the sauce.

The right wine - our suggestions

At a pinch a rich Sauvignon Blanc might suffice, but overall we suggest a Chardonnay would fit the bill even better. And there are plenty of candidates around. But this doesn't mean any Chardonnay would do. Light colored versions like French Chablis from northern Burgundy with vibrant acidity, won’t have the guts to work. That’s not to say a little tartness, enough to cut through some of the richness of the dish, is desirable. But what we are looking for here is a full-bodied Chardonnay with enough stamina to accommodate the earthiness of the escargot and the herbal butteryness of the sauce.

If you’re a purist and want to carry on the French connection, go to southern Burgundy, the birthplace of Chardonnay. Classic white Burgundy from south of Beaune has ripe pear and apple fruit balanced with soft acidity and minerality. If you can afford a Puligny Montrachet so much the better, but there are many affordable wines simply labeled ‘Bourgogne’ that would go well with this rustic dish. And look to the lesser-known Burgundy villages like Saint Veran or Auxey Duresses or the Maconnais region further south. 

Antonin Rodet 2001 Bourgogne “Vielle Vignes” - $12Prosper Maufoux 2001 Viré-Clesse - $14Georges Duboeuf 2001 Pouilly Fuisse - $18

Ten to fifteen years back we could never have recommended many California Chardonnays for this dish. Many were so heavily oaked that they overpowered even the smokiest of foods. But times have changed. While still retaining inherently deep fruit elements that’s a result of the warm climate, they’re now better balanced, elegant and more food friendly. Look for Napa’s lush Chardonnays with tropical and baked apple tart flavors. And to the west, Sonoma offers equally luxuriant wines often with a restrained earthy structure.

Sebastiani 2001 Chardonnay, Sonoma, California - $15Murphy-Goode 2001 Chardonnay, Sonoma County, California - $16St. Clement 2002 Chardonnay, Napa Valley, California - $18Freemark Abbey 2002 Chardonnay, Napa Valley, California - $21Five Rivers Ranch Chardonnay, Monterey County, California - $15

There’s a ton of American and French know-how and money pouring into South America. In Argentina, 2002 was a superlative year and this vintage is beginning to trickle into the market. South America’s Chardonnays are loaded with clean ripe fruit and are so reasonably priced. And of course it’s impossible to ignore Australia.

Catena 2002 Chardonnay, Argentina - $12Cousino Macul 2002 Antiguas Reserve, Chardonnay, Chile - $12Hope 2002 Hunter Valley Chardonnay, Australia - $12Kirralaa 2002 Chardonnay, South East Australia - $17

Several of New England’s richer Chardonnays would work well too. 

Wölffler 2001 Estate Selection Chardonnay, Long Island, New York State -$20Chamard 2000 Estate Chardonnay, Connecticut - $15 

Side bar

The accoutrements of cooking and eating escargot

The accoutrements that go with classic Escargot Bourguignonne are the cooking/serving plate, the tiny two-pronged fork to pull the snail out of the shell and the "tongs" to hold the shell steady. There are two types of escargot plates. One has six shallow indentations and is for "escargot in the shell." The other is for escargot "without the shell" and the six indentations in the plate are deeper. In both cases the escargot are served in the plate they are cooked in.

Canned escargot is readily available in specialty stores and in most supermarkets. The shells are sold separately. Although the U.S. imports most of it's escargot, and not only from France, escargot farming is gaining popularity in the U.S. Fresh snails (live or frozen) are difficult to find and are sold mostly to restaurants. If you demand fresh snails you just might have to start your own snail farm in your backyard. R.V "Dick" Johnson, a heliculturist is prepared to help you on your way with a start-up kit and a how to video.www.frescargot.com.

The etiquette of eating escargot? Just don't put the tongs on your nose like Lucy did!

Elgg Snail Farm, (Switzerland)

Worried by lack of commercial snail faming in Nigeria, Eddie Iregbeyen Okhiria, director, Snail Care Farm, Lagos, in this interview with Hope Moses-Ashike, sees the need for government to encourage the culture of snail farming in citizens as an avenue to alleviate poverty.

Potentials/challenges Snail farming has lots of potentials, but our approach is not a right one. In Nigeria, farming is still being taught in

classrooms, air-conditioned offices; pages of newspapers, magazines, radio, and television stations. Awareness creation and enlightenment is not enough to make the nation realize its potential in this vital agricultural business. This is because people who have acquired such training are not able to put to use what they learnt due to lack of practical knowledge. Most people come to my farm having attended between four and five of such trainings, complaining that they are not practical-oriented.

Others who have ventured into the business with half-baked knowledge have ended up with sad experiences such as high rate of mortality, stunting, and poor hatchings of their snails. Discouraged, many have abandoned the venture for other businesses. This explains the reason why there are no commercial snail farms in Nigeria, in spite of the efforts and resources that have gone into enlightenment programmes.

Like other types of farming such as poultry, piggery, fish, grass cutters, cassava, cocoa, maize, etc, snail farming is a serious business with its own methodsand peculiarities. While practitioners and the media have a role to play in highlighting the potentials inherent in snail farming to the general public, on-the-farm practical knowledge, followed by mentoring, are also parts of the vital solution. I strongly believe that the nation has had enough of enlightenment and awareness creation in snail farming. The time

has come for us to move forward to practical commercial snail farming.

Skills required When interested, snail farmers imbibe practical knowledge and are mentored by experienced snail farmers for a reasonable period of time, they will then be able to set up and manage their snail farms. What you require using our own technology; include blocks, rod, cement; sand, if you use these materials to construct the pen, it stands the test of time.

Some people use wood, bamboo, after one or two seasons, they can be spoilt by the rain. But cement, rod, galvanized wire net can be there for a very long time. If it is one plot of land, you can be looking at between N750, 000 and N800, 000 if you already have land. But for half of a plot, you can divide it into N400, 000 or one quarter.

It can be about N200,000 or N250,000 and for one pen of 5x5 can take about N100,000 to N150,000 or much less than that. To start the business is a function of land space available. You can start with N50, 000, N40, 000 depending on the space you have. But we are talking about commercial snail farming, not just snail farming. We should move away from rearing snails in tyres, clay pot, boxes to the modern method of free range system that you use in rearing 100,000 snails for local consumption and export.

Worth of business If you look at the infrastructure available, I have the entire basic infrastructure - land, the farm, farm house, and so on. When you put all these things together, if somebody were to come here today to buy the business plus the goodwill, I do not think I can sell it at N7 or N8 million.

Core service My core services include training and capacity building, constructing snailries, and setting up commercial snail farms nationwide and mentoring. My farm is on two- plot of land, comprising a farmhouse, training garden and a snail farm with over 3,000 food and shelter plants and water facilities.

Given my experience and expertise acquired over the years, I am capable of setting up several acres of snail farm spiced with assorted food and shelter plants.

Snail feeds Snail feeds on various kinds of vegetables, fruits and decaying organic matter. In addition, sand is part of their nutrition, which they use to buildtheir shell. They are the cheapest animals to feed. Consequently an

overhead in the business is minimal.

Profit Benefits derivable on snail farming are enormous, if only the opportunities and potentials are properly tapped. Governments of the Niger Delta region may wish to use it to address youth restiveness in the states. Return on investment on the long run is over 100 percent, considering additional income from the sale of fruits of food and shelter plants. Cost of investment is minimal relative to returns. Snails are prolific layers capable of producing 20 eggs annually. Advanced countries of the world: USA, France, Italy, Greece, and even some African countries like Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Senegal, Morocco, Tunisia, are profiting from the business.

Some of these countries produce snails for their local consumption and also export, so, why not Nigeria? Snail farming, using our model, will lead to increase in national production of vegetables and fruits from the food and shelter plants.

 A History of Snail Cultivation. Edible Snails (Escargots). 

Even today, snail cultivation has got a very real economic significance. In France alone, 40,000 tonnes of snails are eaten per year. A large part of those are, even today, snails picked in nature and imported from Eastern Europe and Turkey. From an ecological point of view this is intolerable. From the consumer's point of view it also is, because those snails are not retraceable. Nobody knows where exactly they come from, sometimes not even what kind of snails they are.

French snail cultivation methods usually aim at fattening the snails by keeping large numbers of them in small spaces, greenhouses and pens, and feeding them with artificial food mixes.

In France, usually the Escargot Petit Gris (Cornu aspersum) is cultivated. Though this species cannot compete with the Escargot de Bourgogne (Helix pomatia) in taste and size, it appears to be practically impossible to cultivate Helix pomatia, according to French sources. Only Cornu aspersum, also called the common snail, due to its abundant distribution on the British Isles, has very little demands and so can be kept using the described cultivation methods.

So a solution is sought by cross-breeding with giant Cornu aspersum varieties from North Africa (circumventing any form of nomenclature those are called Helix aspersa maxima), but the result are snails with dark meat that have to be cultivated further, so they more resemble the desired Helix pomatia externally. They are nothing like those in taste all the same.

 

Farm snail (Helix pomatia) [RN]

As so often is the case, the statement, an economically feasible cultivation of Helix pomatia was not possible, is not entirely accurate. Helix pomatia cultivation exceeding simple fattening of snails mainly in Southern Germany has got a old history going back into the Middle Ages. At that time, trade connections. for medieval standards almost worldwide, from peasant Swabia to Vienna and Paris, are witness to the success of Swabian snail trade.

France still remains the main producer of snails. But even the French have to import snails to meet the demands of their market.

Snail Cultivation Close to Nature

The tale of successful snail marketing has spread also into other countries. Snail raising being a French national discipline, the art of snail cultivation or héliciculture is a young one in Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

In 18th century Austria, though, snail farming had been quite widespread. Several noble's estates even had their own snail farms to provide the lord with a sufficient number of delicacies in shells.

Basically there are several possibilities to keep snails at a larger scale. As described earlier, snail cultivation, like it is usual in France, will aim at fast gains by weight and

number of snails at the expense of taste. In contrary to that the German (the revised Italian) method aims at quality rather than merely quantity, keeping snails in an environment close to nature.

This method of snail cultivation close to nature retraces successful historical methods from Southern Germany and additionally introduces modern cultivation methods. Application of herbicides and artificial fertilisers is generally avoided, instead legumes are used for a natural nitrogen fertilisation - green fertilising instead of artificial fertilisers. Finally green food is fed instead of artificial food mixes.

Cultivation in Fenced In Pens

The snails are basically kept in pens bordered by fences, in which green food plants are grown before putting in the snails. It is generally not feasible to mount nets against birds and other snail catchers. A metal wall dug deeply into the soil around the farm keeps other snail predators, such as mice, shrews and other four-footed snail hunters, out. Besides, a specially manufactured network fence keeps the snails in. There are, though, many other steps of works to be done, before one snail can be settled into the new enclosure. For example excessive plant growth must be avoided without applying herbicides, that would finally reappear in the snails' organisms.

Enclosures in a snail farm in Elgg (Switzerland). [RN]

 

 

Mangold (spinach beet) - only one of possible food plants. [1]

A special limiting factor is self-inflicted regulation among snails preventing overpopulation. Only 20 at most snails can be kept on one square metre (3300 snails are kept in an enclosure of 150 - 160 square metres). A snail's slime contains a chemical agent limiting fertility. It is visibly disagreeable for a snail to have to crawl over another snail's trace. So the number of snails able to be kept in one enclosure, in the long run, is limited. Which means that from the beginning there must be several enclosures to raise the young snails.

The natural prerequisite for keeping snails in enclosures is an alkaline type of soil with a sufficient content of calcium carbonate. A snail farm can be assumed feasible with certainty where snails occur naturally. Generally, sufficient natural humidity prevailing, it is not necessary to irrigate artificially. Humidity because of dew, but also because of the natural precipitation is usually sufficient. It is because of dew that no net should be mounted against birds: The net would catch the dew and deprive the snails from an important source of water. It is, though, prudent to build perches for birds of prey and to let nature regulate itself.

A sufficient amount of vegetation in the enclosure not only provides food, but also hiding places for the snails. Food plants, such as clover, chicory, turnip rape, spinach beet and wild cabbage can be used. Only fresh green food is not sufficient. In regular periods the snails must also additionally be provided with limp plant food. Legumes naturally provide the soil with nitrates. In empty enclosures the plants are ploughed in to provide a green fertiliser. Additional artificial fertilising so becomes unnecessary.

Processing Snails

While a part of the snails is moved into a new enclosure to prevent overpopulation, another part is selected to be processed now. As in any farm keeping animals, there is no way to pass the moment where snails, on which life lots of time have been invested, have to be processed. That means, the snails have first to be collected, and then to be killed.

If snails are processed in a suitable manner, they will not have to suffer unnecessarily. Snails are killed in boiling hot water, which means an instant and almost painless death. The visceral sac with digestive gland and most of the digestive apparatus is removed, which also means that the snails have not to be starved before they are killed.

Usually snails are sold conserved in different ways: In tins in a sauce, or frozen. Transporting live snails is a bit complicated, as the route of transport must remain short, and special transport containers are necessary, otherwise the snails will escape, in which they are specialists.

Mainly two types of snails are marketed: On one hand the crawling snails collected in early summer after laying their eggs, and the

A farm snail in the clover. [RN]

 

 

Lid snails - ready for marketing. [1]

fat lid snails, that are collected after the start of hibernation, when they have the largest weight and are richest in content.

Conclusion

Cultivating snails for consummation remains a controversial subject. On one hand to an increasing degree cuisines outside of France begin to show interest in snail recipes. Snail farms also appear quite often in the media: Snails as such and the people who keep them are still considered a little bit queer. So snail farms tend to have a constant amount of audience.

On the other hand there are also voices to be heard, that hold the view, snail cultivation was not vitally necessary and therefore is to be considered a cruelty.

In the end, it will remain with each person on their own to form an opinion and to inform themselves from the different sources.

Additional Links:

http://www.schneckenzucht.de : German Institute for Snail Cultivation [1] (In German) http://www.schneckenland.at : Schneckenland (snail land) - An innovative Austrian

snail cultivation farm from Bad Erlach in county Wiener Neustadt, Lower Austria. http://www.grafschafter-weinbergschneckenzucht.de : Grafschafter

Weinbergschneckenzucht (In German). http://www.badische-schneckenzucht.de : Badische Schneckenzucht (In German). Philippe und Julien Thomas : Escargot Passion (In French and English).

Sources:

US National Agricultural Library : Raising Snails.

The Controversial Discussion:

Helix-pomatia.de: "The Fascinating Life of the Snail" by Peter Leonhardt (In German).

Quotation from the Guestbook:

By Symon Bye from Cirencester, England, on May 20th: "Great site! Am currently trying to apply for a licence to breed Roman Snails. As Cirencester was the Roman Capital of England for a time there still exists a Roman Snail population although dwindling. I hope my licence application is successful as I do not want them to die out all together. Thank

you for your insights... ". (  Visit the guestbook!)

http://www.theinnovationdiaries.com/866/snail-farming/

Snail Farming Benefits from Free Range Principlesby KATIE FLYNN No Comments

A plate of escargot. What type of farm did it come from?

 

Like all commercially farmed animals in the agricultural business, snails have been and continue to be exploited by farmers whose main focus is dollar amounts.  Perhaps more so for snails.  Their size and characteristics surely don’t work well in their favor.  Does the average farmer, or even consumer, feel empathy for a crowded or stressed snail?  Most likely, the answer is, no.

 

 

But there are farmers out there who love these little snails and want them to have the best life possible until they are sold for consumption.  The previous acceptable conditions have been re-assessed by some in Australia and New Zealand.  Several farmers with the help of an independent veterinarian have developed a new code of conduct called The Australian Free-range SnailFarming Code of Practice.  The newer code was written to urge free-range snail farming and focuses on how farming sustainably has a positive affect on snail production overall. Similar to the tenants of free-range farming, if you want tastier escargot, source your appetizer from a free range snail farm.

 

Free range snail farm.

 

The Code encourages the natural biological cycle cycles  through the implementation of several organicprinciples that will generate superior breeding production and a higher rate of growth in the snails.   Because there is overall less handling and less chemicals used, the stress level of the snails is greatly reduced.  A happier snail makes for a bigger healthier snail which in turn can lead to more profit because of the quality and taste of the snail. Pretty straightforward.

Conventional non-free range snail farm.

 

The Code also supports using more humane ways of processing the snail.  It lists the ways in which commercial farmers process their snails, to make clear- what not to do.  For example, on factory farms where snails are over crowded to begin with, live snails are soaked in salted water to be killed.  Others methods deemed unacceptable are placing the snails that are actively crawling or moving around in boiling water and even placing the snails in cold water before its boiled is deemed inhumane.

 

The humane process that the code supports is a process which involves purging the snails and then slowly immobilizing them in nets before placing them in a boiler containing water that is kept at a boil.  Purging is a practice that requires the snails to eat a diet of wheat and bran for six days to clear their digestive tract of any soil or grit.  The immobilization process is completed by placing the snails in netting bags and using cool natural air circulation or in a cool room for 24 hours.  This slows their metabolism considerably so that they are almost in a hibernating state.  Placing them in the boiler after immobilization causes instant death and has been deemed the most humane way to kill the snails.

Sure, snails are small critters, easily ignored, yet advocates of good food can stand behind this practice of humane, free range snail farming in order to bring better food to the table.

Simple and efficient solution for small and big farming Fencings are the most important structures necessary for a correct and economical production in the snail farming in the open air.They need to avoid the snails escape, protect the farming from predators entry, keep separated the different moments in the snails life-cycle (birth and fattening) and also facilitate the correct mollusc breathing.A correctly installed TENAX ELIX plant will enable to reduce the farmer presence with good results in labour saving.

easy and fast installation

reduced realization cost and maximum productivity

long lasting, assuring investment

guarantees a correct farming airing

Farming With Horsesby ANNABEL SCHOEMAN No Comments

In the olden days we relied on the natural resources we had at hand to cultivate agricultural land. Today, many again have turned to these old techniques to save on costs and reduce the carbon footprint cultivation of agricultural land leaves behind.

 

Commonly, horses are used as show horses, racers, on ranches to cut cattle from the herd and just for the joy of riding. However, the use of horses is much bigger than you might realize. When you look at it, each horse is bred and trained for specific reasons and jobs, and one of these jobs include farming.

 

Image: Farming with Horses

Though the use of horses for farming might seem redundant, it is a method many farms use to become more eco-friendly and environmentally responsible.

 

Besides these environmentally sound reasons, using horses to replace fuel driven machinery, is also very costeffective for the farmer in order to maintain and cultivate agricultural land. This is however dependant in the size of the farm.

 

The Amish still use these old techniques to work their farms. As you know, the Amish are self sustainable and modern technology is a big no. It is an effective way of production for them, then why not for our smaller, modern farms.

 

Replacing machinery with horses means that the farm produce less carbon pollution and alleviates soil compaction caused by many machineries.

 

Furthermore it is an effective way nitrate groundwater pollution is reduced. It is also important to note that horses can be used for many agricultural processes such as plowing, harrowing and corn planting.

 

Many farms use horses for logging, cultivating land, both the planting and picking of corn, corn binding, grain drilling, bailing, the spreading of manure to fertilize land as well as mowing and raking.

 

As you can see, almost all fuel driven machinery on a farm can be replaced by older technology equipment and horses.

 

To be fair, the technological advances in machinery have enabled agricultural production to increase at a faster pace. This faster pace allows for a cheaper in store product that we can rely on. It is a sure deliverable that will not only be available, but be available on time.

 

Asking farms that produce agricultural products on a nationwide scale, to drop all fuel driven machinery and switch to use of horses, will not only mean an immediate cost for the farms, but a smaller production and delivery scale.

 

It is an effective way of farming for smaller farms that produce less. Bigger farms we rely on the feed not only our own nation, but to derive an income from exports, cannot afford to stop the use of machinery.

 

These modern techniques were put in place so that agricultural products can be produced at a faster pace and on a wider scale. Switching from machinery to horse will have a devastating effect on a nation’s economy.

 

Yes, jobs can be created by switching back to older techniques, but the amount of jobs that will be lost, will be far greater.

 

There has to be a change in the way our machinery operates, but it has to be as effective as those we already have in place.

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Starting a Farmby MIKE KLEPFER No Comments

Starting a farm is not an easy undertaking but it can be rewarding. Image: Nicholas T/flickr

Wanting to farm is a commendable desire. Farmsgive us food. From mass-produced cereal grains to the most well-tended, ultra-local crops, meats and dairy goods, a farmer had to have the know-how and put in hard work to bring them to you. There are many things you should consider when looking to start a farm. They are entirely practical, as a farm is a business. Simply having the desire to do this will get you pretty far, but only foresight and hard work will get you off the ground.

 

New Farm Approaches

We’ll start with the assumption that you want to farm sustainably and that you have less than 50 acres to work with. Think about what you want to grow and the scale to which you want to grow it. Focusing on one or two crops simplifies things, but makes your farm more susceptible to pests and sicknesses or the ill effects of bad weather. For instance, if you have a corn crop, it will be susceptible to the same pests and diseases, as it is monocropped in a widely-distributed area and would be a breeding ground for pests. Diversifying your crops makes this less precarious, but it also means that you have to pay more specific attention to the variety that you’re cultivating. Farms moved away from this, favoring efficiency and purely economic concerns as a model when they fell into industrial production.

You could grow livestock, as well, but this takes room. Goats, chickens and pigs are less space-intensive than cattle. They need to be rigorously maintained and fed and watered regularly.

 

Farm Knowledge

Jump in. It’s okay. But first, talk to farmers in your area. As many as you can. Work for them, ask them any questions you have and identify the ones that can help you. You’ll need them. They can also help you through the process of procuring a loan to start, if you need that. Currently credit is tight and will continue to be for the foreseeable future. The start-up cost for a small farm needn’t be immense when you buy used equipment, but fencing, feed, fuel, seeds, are all inputs that must be considered. You’ll need a pickup, too, if you’ll be hauling things. Talk to an accountant when setting up your business, formally and learn whatever tax breaks and write-offs you can get.

Also, your local university agricultural extension can offer classes or answer your questions.

 

Marketing

As a small farmer, you’ll most likely be taking your products to a farmer’s market or selling it via a CSA, or community-supported agriculture. Both models have their advantages or disadvantages. A CSA means that your customers come to you, but you also have to give them enough to justify their investment.

Farmers markets mean harvesting your crops, storing them temporarily and then transporting them. You’re right up against other stalls, too and while farmers markets are a friendly atmosphere, you could be undercut by someone selling something for twenty cents less than you’re asking for. The  advantage is that people will browse around and have come down specifically to buy food. You can chat them up, too. It helps to be charismatic.

 

Starting a farm is a serious endeavor. A farmer’s life is a hard one, albeit rewarding. Unless you have some serious farm experience it may be in your best interest to volunteer at a farm through the WWOOF program or other opportunity to get a taste of what it is like to grow food for a living.

How Many Eggs Does a Chicken Lay?by INNOVATION STAFFA mature laying hen will produce an egg about every other day. Three laying hens will give you an average

of two eggs a day.

Leghorns, Plymouth Rock, Red Star, Light Sussex and Barred Rocks are some of the best laying breeds.

Depending on whether you want eggs to eat or to raise, starting with good layers and finding the proper ratio of breeds for your

specific desires is important. Some hens will brood on their eggs (sit on their nest), while some fantastic layers will not brood.

Careful observation of your flock is necessary to make these determinations.