Snail slime is set to be among the fastest-rising skin care products with its market set to expand by 5.8 per cent in every one of the next 10 years to reach $2.40 billion. This is being driven by rising consumer awareness and demand for cosmetics that naturally and ‘cleanly’ fix the skin.
In the last two decades, snail farming has grown by over 200 per cent in countries such as Italy which have a favourable climate to grow the mollusk. According to Business Insider, farmers in the world’s fashion capital are positioning themselves to cash in on the billion-dollar industry that is entering its prime with one snail farmer describing slime’s demand as simply “Incredible” to the publication.
“The demand for snail slime will only grow as Western consumers are increasingly demanding for ‘clean beauty’, which refers to more sustainable plant and animal-derived beauty products,” said Rita Linkner, a dermatologist and the founder of RVL Skincare to US’s Morning Brew.
Mucin, which is the protein gel that forms the slimy mucus discharge snails leave behind, is harvested from live snails to make beauty products that hydrate the skin, get rid of acne, dark spots, and facial redness, hide wrinkles, heal wounds, and even slow down ageing and treating cuts and burns in hospital theatre rooms.
While it might seem like a novel skincare routine, the earliest use of snail slime to take care of our skin was first practised, unlikely enough, by Chilean farmers in the 1980s. The farmers who were growing snails to sell to hotels in Europe noticed that handling the slimy animals left their hands softer than before and also hastened the healing of any cuts on their hands.
Related News: Nairobi’s Karen farmer bets on unpopular snail farming for cash
Related News: JKUAT develops snail by-products to spur Brown Snail farming in Kenya
South Korean beauty or as it is more commonly known, K-beauty which is famous the world over as the vanguard for innovative skin formulas that are designed to keep the skin hydrated and shiny, a look referred to as “glass skin”, was the first to harvest snail mucin in making cosmetic products in the mid-2000s. Mucin was prized in the country because it naturally achieved the sought-after “glass skin” look, the popular Korean skincare goal.
Today, mucin can be found in the world’s creams, face masks, moisturisers, cleansers, essences, and serums for major global skincare brands such as COSRX, Mizon, Benton, Peach Slices, Holika Holika, and Missha to make products such as Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence, Snail Rescue All-in-One Moisturizer, Snail 92 All in One Cream and Snail Bee High Content Skin Toner.
In Kenya, innovators such as Wangari Waweru, owner of The Golden Snail Farm, are shining a light on the money-making potential of snail mucin by harvesting it for individual buyers and making soaps and skin creams.
Related News: Consumers chase healthier replacement for sugar vaulting stevia market above all other herbs
“When I started farming snails for food in 2017, many of my neighbours thought I was practising some strange voodoo,” said the farmer based in Bahati Constituency in Nakuru.
Eight years on, Kenyan women and expatriates in the country now seek her out to harvest the mollusk’s mucin for use as a skin moisturiser and to keep their skin young.
Wangari, who also exports the slime to Asia, said this is because moisturisers and serums with a high concentration of snail slime that land in the country cost 30 to 70 per cent more than standard beauty products because of the skin healing, anti-aging, and hydration properties of snail mucin.
As an example, a 150ml tube of anti-wrinkle snail mucus moisture emulsion goes for a whooping Sh2,000 in local shops.
“I use the slime to make various soap formulations that incorporate carrot juice, strawberries, turmeric aloe vera, and cucumbers to give the slime a fragrant smell when making soaps and lotions,” she illuminated.
She took the step into value addition because the majority of Kenyans are still apprehensive about applying ‘mucus’ on their skin.
Related News: Varsity helping farmers unlock snail farming’s untapped potential
Related News: Enterprising Kenyan leader spearheads snail farming
Related News: Kenyan farmers tap into foreign nationals snail appetite
The innovative farmer who exclusively uses her own handcrafted soaps is looking for approval from the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) to begin local cottage production.
As she beams and runs her fingers over her clear smooth skin, she attests that for her and the ladies she has shared free samples of the soaps with, the results are obvious.
Image Courtesy