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about 450 kg french snails €90,000 worth has been stolen from a farm in champagne region of France.
Producer Jean-Mathieu Dauvergne said the fresh and frozen snails were taken from L’Escargot des Grands between Sunday night and Monday morning.
In a Facebook post explaining the massive theft, Dauvergne said the snails were enough to feed 10,000 people and that the theft was a “very hard blow”.
“This is definitely not the kind of post we thought we would write with the holidays approaching. We have been robbed and so has our stock of fresh and frozen snails,” the post said.
“The coming weeks are usually the most important for us… so this is a shock, a misunderstanding and a real blow to the entire team. We are doing our best to replenish our stock to keep you satisfied for the holidays.”
Most of the snails were for Christmas delivery to fine restaurants such as the Michelin-starred Domaine Les Creyres In Reims, which serves them in a puff-pastry dish.
Dauvergne said parisian When he learned that the snails had been taken he was in a state of shock.
“They cut fences, broke doors with wood and broke light detectors,” he said. “Then he himself helped take care of the things in my cold storage room.
“It is very surprising because they stole the raw material: 450 kilograms of snail meat. It is incredible to steal such a quantity. It must be the work of a very organized network.”
There are 271 snail farms in France and Dauvergne said the high profile of his farm meant it made him a target.
“We have become known and that has definitely attracted criminals,” he said. parisian,
Epernay police officer, Commander Rémi Dubois, said that the snails were worth almost as much as champagne and that he believed the thieves were likely “experienced and professional”.
According to agricultural chambers, the French eat about 14,300 tons of snails per year, but 95 percent is imported.
The 450 kilograms of mollusks missing were the farm’s entire annual production and they have tried to find alternative ways to fulfill their orders for Christmas.
Dauvergne is primarily purchasing the snails from other producers, but his farm’s reputation is so high that some restaurants have said they would sooner take the item off the menu than sell the substitute.