French farm has €90,000 worth of escargot snails stolen

Thieves stole €90,000 (£79,000; $104,000) worth of snails from a farm in northern France that caters to gourmet restaurants.

L’Escargot Des Grands Crus in Bouzy, near Reims, said its entire stock of fresh and frozen snails had been stolen; it’s a “real coup” ahead of the holiday season.

Thieves broke into the farm overnight on Monday and cut through the border fence before gaining access to the farm buildings, but a police complaint was not lodged until later in the week, news site Franceinfo reported.

Officers are currently keeping track as the farm tries to restock to meet end-of-year demand from customers.

Edible snail or escargot is a French delicacy that is usually cooked in garlic butter or wine before being removed from its shell.

Manufacturers in France see an increase in sales around December as people spend money to get the treat during Christmas and New Year celebrations.

“This is definitely not the type of article we intend to write as the holidays approach,” L’Escargot Des Grands Crus wrote in a statement announcing the theft on Thursday.

Describing the incident as “a shock, an incomprehension and a real blow to the whole team”, it added: “We are trying our best to replenish our stock to keep you satisfied over the holidays.”

The farm supplies restaurants, including the Michelin-starred Les Crayères in Reims, as well as delicatessens and private customers, Franceinfo reports.

Photos of the farm after the theft show shelves and refrigerators almost completely clear of snail products.

“A large part of the finished products were stolen from the store and the raw material stock from my laboratory,” Jean-Mathieu Dauvergne, the farm’s manager, told the news site.

This was my end-of-year stockpile… We had just enough money to get through the holidays without any worries.”