Waste yield, proximate and mineral composition of three different types of land snails found in Nigeria.

Some aspects of the chemical and anatomical weight composition of land snails in Nigeria were analysed with a view to assessing the waste yield, carcass yield and their nutritional evaluation on wet weight basis. Proximate analysis of Archachatina, Archatina and Limicolaria species was carried out on the carcass. Moisture and protein contents were high in all samples, fat and ash contents were generally low while crude fibre was not detected. The concentrations of iron, copper, zinc, manganese, sodium, calcium, magnesium, potassium and cobalt were determined in the carcass. Values of iron, calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium were consistently high while both chromium and cobalt were not detected. Anatomical fractionation showed the shell to vary between 17.12 - 31.99%, carcass varied between 36.97 - 45.14% and the intestine varied between 18.80 - 22.74%. Snails interact with man in a variety of ways, the beneficial interactions are enumerated.