You can make good money from rearing and selling Earthworms. Yes! Earthworms! Vermiculture (breeding and rearing Earthworms) is not a popular line of Business. But, surprisingly commands a billion dollar as you would soon agree by the time you must have completed reading this Hub.

You must have-at this moment-be thinking of how possibly you could rear and sell Earthworms. The truth is that, Earthworm Business had been around for a long time, but is recently gaining ground due to nascent ecological campaigns, implying that the market is still expanding; and the process of rearing is so simple that you can start your own earthworm Business.
As a new Entrepreneur investing into Vermiculture, you can decide whether to assume it a part-time or a full-time Enterprise. Which ever is the choice, the Internet is a great tool that can provide a whole wealth of Informations in books, publication, and online marketing. Apart from online earthworm business directories that can give you contacts to a range of list of earthworm buyers and importers in different parts of the World, you can market your Worms by taking advantage of personal internet campaigns and adverts as simplified in Google AdSense, Face book, eBay, Amazon, e.t.c.

If you chose to practice Vermiculture as a part-time business, it could be a great home business or fun filled family business prosecuted at the comfort of your home.

Rearing Earthworms

There are so many ways you can rear your earthworm. You can decide to adopt any of the techniques in various publications on the subject. But all boils to two positions: domestication and rearing in the wild. In the case of the former, you can buy a specially designed plastic bin or simply convert regular bin to a conducive moist habitat that is required for earthworms to thrive. In this case, you are required to: feed the worms (ensuring that not too much food is place inside the Bin), ensure that the the bin is well aerated, check the PH of the soil, and monitor the temperature of the surrounding since earthworms do not tolerate heat. The bin system is most conducive for Home business.

Rearing in the wild is the most conducive and comfortable way of rearing earthworms. Earthworm Entrepreneurs in the US are best know for practicing this type of approach. They map out an area of land, provide the conducive environment, introduce the worms, and start feeding them with dirts. Usually, they are known for rearing the Night-crawler which is the common Earthworm. Their approach to vermiculture do not involve employing so many staffs. They allow the fields to mature and harvest with hired labour.

Harvesting of the night crawler requires that the pickers (hired labourers) must put on a pair of boot, handgloves, and must be armed with touchlight and a small collecting container. Night crawler (as the name implies) comes out of their burrows to the surface in search of food when it is night. As such, pickers should be able to spot and collect them. It is reasonable to pick the adults and leave the smaller ones to mature. Once a field is harvested, it is left for a period of time to mature before another cycle of harvest.

This technique is unique in that, Entrepreneurs can go in partnership with urban waste disposal and rotate different fields at different range of maturation.
What to feed your earthworm

Earthworm feeds on organic matters (up to one third of its body weight a day) by burrowing into soil continuously ingesting both soil and organic products in the process exiting Humus in the form of earthworm cast. As such, feeds for your earthworms covers a wide range of choices so that Entrepreneurs prefers to feed them with waste from slaughter houses, breweries, and paper mills.

The use of animal waste for feeding earthworms informs of a combination of rearing earthworms with animals. Rearing earthworms at the bottom of animal enclosures will not only provide continuous feeds for the earthworms, but will also remove animal feces from farms and control odours in the farm. Farmers can also decide to begin harvesting a third product which is the compost produced by the worms.

You must also not forget that organic materials from garbage can also be used as feeds as we have said before that urban waste disposal are being combined with earthworm fields in the US.

Uses of earthworms

There are a whole range of uses of earthworms but the six below are the most common uses you can depend on.

1. Composting (vermicompost): Earthworms can be used directly in gardens (or farms) to improve soil nutrients, structure, and texture by introducing them into garden soils where they form humus, till, and mix the soil; or indirectly by adding pre-formed earthworm cast to soil as compost manure.

2. As fish food in ponds and aquarium: Earthworms serves as feeds for fishes in ponds and aquariums. With rapidly expanding fish pond business to meet the growing demand for fish, vermiculture can thrive with it.

3. In poultry: Poultry animals are fed with earthworms as source of protein. Your earthworm can find local market in this case.

4. Fishing bait in sport: Recreational fishing demands a large amounts of earthworms which serves as bait for fishes in fresh water.

5. In biology: You can imagine how many schools are there all over the world in need of earthworms for practical biology classes.

6. As dietary nutrient: Earthworms also serve as source of dietary nutrient for some cultures around the World.

 

In this era of "going green" and rapid urbanization, earthworm farmers can find great trade opportunities. But most importantly they must learn to effectively package the worms. Luckily, there are so many books, publications, and guides on rearing earthworms; available on the Internet.

Great post. Thanks very much. Have you tried this or do you know of anyone who is doing it?

Hw many millions av u made so far?cos I get interest.

FarmTech: Great post. Thanks very much. Have you tried this or do you know of anyone who is doing it?

Thanks. Btw am doing it as a part-time business and its really paying well

Can you upload some pictures of the farm? That will be very inspiring. Also, what is the harvest like?

Btw, i have posted pictures of my poultry farm here on nairaland. Please view it and comment: https://www.nairaland.com/1429964/poultry-farm