Markets for earthworms and vermicompost are growing, reflecting a worldwide increased interest in vermiculture and vermicomposting.

Vermiculture defined:

Vermiculture is the process of breeding worms. Growers usually pay for their worm feed, and the worm castings (manure) are often considered a waste product.

Vermicomposting defined:

Vermicomposting is the process of turning organic debris into vermicompost. Operators use a wider variety of feedstocks and make money on tipping fees and sales of castings or vermicompost. The earthworm population usually remains stable.

Applications of Vermiculture – Earthworms can be sold to the following markets:

• Bait and tackle shops
• Large-scale vermicomposting facilities
• Worm growers just entering the business
• Institutions and businesses that do on-site vermicomposting of their food scraps and other organic materials (includes prisons, hospitals, schools, colleges and universities, restaurants, grocery stores, office buildings, etc.)
• Farmers desiring to vermicompost animal manure (including livestock and poultry farms, rabbitries and horse stables)
• Composters, organic gardeners or fisherpeople wanting to raise worms for their own use
• Growers with orders too large to fill from their own stocks
• Private laboratories, universities, and high schools for research and classroom needs

Businesses that need worms as food for animals:

• • Fish hatcheries
  • Tropical fish stores
  • Pet stores
  • Zoos (w/ exotic fish and birds)
  • Gamebird breeders
  • Frog farmers
  • Poultry growers

Industries with organic wastes suitable as feedstock for worms:

• • Composting facilities
  • Papermills
  • Breweries
  • Cardboard manufacturers
  • Land reclamation sites
  • Generators of sludge/biosolids
  • Food processors
  • Canneries
  • Wineries
  • Cotton mills

Application for Vermicomposting – Sell vermicompost in bulk (by cubic yard) or bagged in a variety of compost and soil blends to the following:

• • Home improvement centers
  • Nurseries
  • Landscape contractors
  • Greenhouses
  • Garden supply stores
  • Grocery chains
  • Flower shops
  • Discount houses
  • General public