Sicilian Startup Specializes In Snail Caviar

With its snowy white color and glistening, slimy texture, a snail egg is not necessarily what one generally expects when one is looking for caviar, but they are apparently catching on in Europe anyway, and one Sicilian snail startup says it has a special trick for getting its gastropods to mature in a fraction of the normal amount of time.

According to The Local, the Sicily-based Lumaca Madonita snail company says it can make its snails mature and lay eggs much faster with a special diet of cereals, which means their production time has been shortened to just eight months, as opposed to the traditional two or three years.

"We feed the baby snails a vet-approved diet of cereals, calcium and vitamins which means they grow much more quickly than they do eating leaves," said company founder Davide Merlino.

Caviar from land snails reportedly tastes much different than caviar from fish. The Local reports that it has an earthy flavor "with hints of grass and mushroom." A 50-gram jar of snail eggs sells for $86.