Shell on Earth

In New Quay, a seafood-industry byproduct becomes a garden material. Shell on Earth was launched in 2019 by Jordan and Caryl Andrews, using whelk shells generated at their family’s seafood-processing factory. Based in west Wales, the business sells crushed shells for plant pots, terrariums, and landscaping. Its story connects a coastal activity spanning generations with a gardening product: the material is not quarried for that purpose but comes from seafood processing.

The family factory is in the old Frondolau quarry at the southern end of New Quay, on Cardigan Bay. The company recounts how the site served as a meeting point for fishermen and trucks with live-holding tanks, from which crabs and lobsters were sent to Europe. In the late 1970s, Johnny Arrow, Jordan’s grandfather, acquired the lease and developed crab processing and packing. That history predates Shell on Earth and explains the origin of the material the brand now uses.

In the late 1990s, Dean and Mandy, Jordan’s parents, helped develop a whelk market in Asia. The meat was prepared for customers in South Korea, where it is used in dishes such as golbaengi-muchim. The family operation reached its third generation, and the resulting shells found a different use when Jordan and Caryl launched Shell on Earth. The 2019 date refers to this gardening brand rather than the seafood factory’s beginnings. Its product connects two different markets through the same raw material.

The process is described in several stages. After the seafood is cooked, meat and shells are separated. The shells go to a dedicated factory area, where they are crushed and cleaned three further times, before entering a drying room to remove moisture. Bags are then prepared and hand-tied. The company also explains that organic discards are used for energy generation. The result is a dry, prepared material packaged in bags for distribution.

The shells are offered for dressing plant pots and terrariums, adding a drainage layer, or using in borders, beds, paths, and driveways. The brand presents them as an alternative to grit or gravel and notes that they lighten with sun exposure. The selection extends to compost and substrates, terrarium kits and containers, seeds, bulbs, and tools, including the Niwaki Hori Hori gardening knife with a sheath. The products range from decorating a plant pot to a larger outdoor landscaping project.

The business combines online retail, bulk orders, and distribution through plant shops, gift shops, and garden centers. Within the team, Caryl contributes brand leadership and her interest in terrariums and succulents; Jordan continues to devote substantial time to seafood processing. Retail, wholesale supply, and material preparation have separate roles within the company. Shipping serves much of mainland Britain, with postcode exclusions. Shell on Earth is distinguished by that specific origin: a New Quay family connecting its seafood industry with materials and objects for growing plants and designing gardens.