Pippa Hackett (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this Topical Issue matter, and I convey the apologies of the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy McConalogue, who cannot be here to respond.

Snail farming, also known as heliciculture, is a niche market in Ireland, but one that has been growing in recent years, as the Deputy said. Climatic conditions in Ireland are suitable for year-round snail breeding, and Bord Bia conducted research in 2018 which showed the strong export market potential for snails, particularly in Europe. Snails intended for human consumption are defined in EU food regulations as terrestrial gastropods.

Farmers interested in snail farming may wish to refer to the helpful guidance document on snail farming produced by Teagasc, which is available on its website. Further advisory support for those looking to diversify their enterprises is available through the Options for Farm Families programme, and interested farmers should contact their local Teagasc office, details of which are also available on the website. In addition, Teagasc recommends that potential snail farmers visit a commercial snail farm, of which there are approximately 30 in the country, as the Deputy indicated, to get a feel for what the endeavour entails prior to investing any resources. To register as a snail farmer producing snails for live sale only, or if there is already a herd number for the holding in respect of other farming activities, and the addition of snail farming activities at the holding is required, a completed ER1 application form should be submitted to the regional veterinary office, RVO.

Snail farmers who intend to process snails for human consumption must be registered as a snail farmer with their local Department RVO and they must also be approved to operate as a food business operator with the Department's meat hygiene division. Any person producing food is regarded as a food business operator. In Ireland, all food intended for human consumption must meet the requirements of EU food law.

The main purpose of food law is to ensure a safe food supply and protect consumers' interests in regard to food. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland is responsible for enforcing food law in Ireland and carries out this enforcement through service contracts with official agencies, including the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. To date there are no Department-approved food business operators processing snails for human consumption in Ireland. I understand there were a couple of applications in previous years but that both were withdrawn. Therefore, some farmers did try to obtain food business operator status. Any snail farmer interested in seeking approval to become a food business operator for the processing of snails for human consumption should complete a notification-of-intent application form, which is available on the Department's website, and submit it to the meat hygiene division in Portlaoise.

There are currently no schemes under the rural development programme to support snail farming. However, snail farming may benefit from wider supports, such as Enterprise Ireland's innovation voucher scheme, for which the Teagasc food research centres are knowledge providers. This scheme awards vouchers of €5,000 to small companies with a business opportunity or problem. The voucher can be exchanged for advice and expertise. Further details can be found on the website.

The topical issue was quite open-ended so the detail on what I have to speak about is limited. The Deputy has identified that snails are identified under Annex 1 of Regulation (EC) No. 853/2004 as terrestrial gastropods. Classification is at the discretion of the member states. The justification of the classification of snails as fish in France, for example, may relate to the fact that snails, being terrestrial gastropods, are closely related to their marine cousins. Each member state has discretion to identify a snail as either a fish or an animal.

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