Ohio Fish Farm Raises Shrimp, Stocks Farm Ponds

Ohio Fish Farm Raises Shrimp Stocks Farm Ponds LIVESTOCK Exotic Animals With $8 billion worth of seafood imported into the U S every year many rural landowners are finding ways to cash in on the boom in aquaculture
A 1-acre pond can raise up to 2 000 lbs of freshwater shrimp which can be harvested and sold fresh to buyers in one day says Bob Calala whose family has been involved in the industry for 44 years The Calalas run a diverse nursery selling juvenile shrimp and yellow perch largemouth bass and smallmouth bass fingerlings and raising fresh water shrimp soft-shell crayfish fathead minnows and food and game fish The family business has 60 ponds on 90 acres of water plus tanks made out of grain bin rings for shrimp nurseries
Calala nots that in Ohio there are already 200 licensed aquaculture operations
The largest expense is digging the ponds he explains He recommends rectangular ponds 6 to 8 ft deep that can be drained which makes them usable for raising fish or shrimp
Shrimp bring the quickest return In 100 days with water temperatures that start at 70 degrees and stay above 60 degrees they re ready to sell Consumers want fresh safe shrimp Calala says and selling them is the easy part An article in the local paper and a couple of simple ads resulted in cars lined up an hour before his sale started in 2006 He and his workers netted out 800 lbs of shrimp rinsed them off and sold them within three hours Half the customers went home empty-handed The following year they sold 1 500 lbs Customers bring their own ice and containers and pay $8/lb
If you want a second crop you can stock rainbow trout Calala says Put 8 to 10-in trout in the pond in the fall raise them until the ice is out feed them and harvest them at 12 to 15 inches in April by having people come and fish them out of the pond for a couple of weekends Because it s a form of entertainment you can make more money than just selling them for stocking
In the past there has also been a good market for bait soft-shell crayfish which sell for about $5/doz in Ohio
The Calalas other market is selling game fish for stocking That market takes a couple of years to establish Calala says It s also a limited market since once a pond is stocked the fish reproduce and the buyer doesn t need to buy more fish
For the Calalas diversification has helped them survive fluctuating markets and changing regulations As president of the Ohio Aquaculture Association and a member of agriculture and natural resources boards Calala is willing to share information with people interested in aquaculture His business also sells juvenile shrimp 8 cents/apiece to shrimp growers
Though there are challenges with increased fuel and feed costs the market is good Calala says Consumers want fresh locally grown food that they know is safe and naturally grown if you build a pond you can raise anything in it Calala says
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Bob Calala 421 State Route 60 S New London Ohio 44851 ph 419 929-8052; calala@earthlink net

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