The word heliciculture, etymologically comes from Latin, alluding to the breeding of snails, made up of two Latin voices that are "helix" which means "type of snail", plus "cultivar" which of course means "to cultivate". Heliciculture can be specifically defined as the work aimed at the rearing or cultivation of edible land snails for commercial purposes, which can be practiced in a natural environment or manipulated by man. Snails are mollusks that historically speaking make their appearance since the beginning of humanity, fulfilling as a fundamental role that of feeding man but also in other aspects and areas of his life, such as in medicine, religion, art, traditions, among others.
The people who practice this activity are known as "helicultores", that is, all those who are in charge of raising and caring for the snails, which may well be for commercial purposes or as a hobby, but they are also in charge of analyzing and study the needs of these mollusks in order to provide them with a suitable habitat that helps their reproduction and also the development of possible offspring.
In prehistoric times, snails were already used as food; but it was at the time of the Roman Empire that they created spaces for their breeding and development; then this phenomenon spread to Africa, in territories such as Roman Gaul and what is now known as Italy, snails were accompanied with wine or with fruits and cheeses. For the Middle Ages these mollusks continued to be a great source of food for man, accompanying them with onion and oil.
It was at the beginning of the 20th century that there was an increase in the demand for snails, so their economic value also increased, so certain attempts were made to raise them, analyzing each of their phases; which resulted in what is now known as heliciculture, being classified as an internationally recognized zootechnical activity.
