A commercial medicinal leech farm in Anhui Province, China, produces 36 tonnes wet weight of Whitmania pigra annually, yielding approximately 6 tonnes of dried product. The dried leeches sell for around RMB 700 per kilogram (US$100), supplying both traditional Chinese medicine and pharmaceutical products such as blood-thinning capsules.

The farm rears leeches in above-ground tanks of 135 m² each, holding up to 10,000 individuals per tank. Tanks are covered with shade cloth to maintain dim conditions.

Adults reach 50 g in weight and stretch over 15 cm in length. The farm produces its own seed, with adults producing around three cocoons containing approximately 30 eggs each, totaling 90 eggs per individual. Unlike blood-feeding species, W. pigra is predatory and feeds on aquatic snails from hatching onwards. The farm sources live snails from local ponds as feed.