Magnolia Shrimp

New Farm in Kentucky Will Supply “Fresh”

Shrimp to the Heartland of the USA

Magnolia Shrimp, LLC, has developed an indoor, state-of-the-art, ecologically friendly, recirculating shrimp farm in Beaver Dam, Kentucky, and plans to market fresh shrimp in the heartland of the United States, from Chicago to Atlanta.  Its first crop should hit the market by February 2008.  Brian Boudreau, general manager and shrimp scientist, has over twenty years of experience designing and managing large outdoor shrimp farms in Central and South America.  He says: “Our current facilities include a 14,000 square foot hatchery that will house up to 2,000 broodstock that can produce more than 1,000,000 postlarvae a week.  We will select and breed shrimp designed to thrive in the high density environment found in our system.  Once the postlarvae reach sufficient size, they will be transferred to the nursery tanks in the company’s 30,000 square foot prototype production building.”  The production building has four growout tanks that hold 135,000 gallons of water each.

After about six weeks in the nursery tanks, the shrimp will be transferred into the growout tanks (35’ x 150’ x 3.5’) for approximately 12 weeks and then harvested at about six inches and more than 20 grams.  When fully operational, the facility will yield consistent crops in excess of 1,000 pounds a week.

The company’s site in Beaver Dam has room for two more production buildings.  “We also hope to expand our business by creating a contract grower program under which Magnolia will provide postlarvae and production expertise to contract growers, creating an alternative farming opportunity for Kentucky farmers,” said Boudreau.  Under an agreement with the contract growers, Magnolia will then purchase the shrimp from the growers and distribute them through its marketing network.  Boudreau said Magnolia’s site in central Kentucky allows it to cost effectively deliver fresh shrimp to a number of major markets in heart of the United States.

On November 12, 2007, I chatted with Dr. Jim Anderson, president of Magnolia Shrimp and former manager of SyAqua’s international operations that had shrimp hatcheries in Mexico, Brazil and Thailand.  Anderson said that Magnolia would use a heterotrophic bio-floc system, oxygen for aeration, shrimp feeds produced by Zeigler in Pennsylvania and genetically improved broodstock that was purchased from SyAqua.

Dr. Michael Timmons, a co-founder of Magnolia Shrimp, has worked in aquacultural engineering for 20 years as a researcher and extension specialist.  He currently occupies the J. Thomas Clark Professorship of Entrepreneurship and Personal Enterprise within the Biological and Environmental Engineering Department at Cornell University.

Over the past year, Magnolia has conducted a series of trial production runs using facilities at Kentucky State University in Frankfort, one of the top five aquaculture universities in the country.  The trials, conducted under a joint research agreement with KSU, helped Magnolia perfect its production system and prove that it could produce tasty, marine shrimp at an inland location.  Magnolia and KSU will continue to conduct joint research on shrimp growout.  Magnolia is also working with the University of Kentucky in Lexington on some of the engineering challenges with indoor shrimp production systems.

Information: Brian Boudreau (phone 270-799-3401, email brianboudreau01@yahoo.com, webpage http://www.magnoliashrimp.com).

Sources: Magnolia Shrimp, LLC.  News release.  Magnolia Shrimp Announces Grand Opening of New Indoor, Marine Shrimp Facilities in Beaver Dam, KY.  November 5, 2007.  2. Times-News (Hartford and Beaver Dam, Kentucky).  Company opening indoor saltwater shrimp facility.  Don Wilkens (editor@octimesnews.com).  November 8, 2007.  3. Telephone conversation with Jim Anderson on November 12, 2007.  4. Holder Timmons Engineering Webpage.  Site visit on November 12, 2007.

Country Reports

Colombia

Shrimp Farming Equipment For Sale

A small, intensive shrimp farm that operated for only one year has a lot of equipment for sale, all of it top brands and either new or like-new.  Here’s what’s available:

• Pioneer paddlewheels and air injectors that were used for one crop of 110 days

• Some paddlewheels that were never used

• A plate freezer that was never used

• New or like-new Hach water quality testing equipment

• A Heli-Arc harvester that was used for two harvests only

• Blowers that have less than 1,500 hours of use on them (one never used)

• An Ogen oxygen generator that was used for only 500 hours

Information: Jorge Saieh (phone 57-310-707-8419, email jsaieh99@yahoo.com).

Source: The Shrimp List (a mailing list for shrimp farmers, “shrimp-subscribe@yahoogroups.com”).  Subject: [shrimp] Excellent equipment for sale, like new.  From: “jsaieh99” (jsaieh99@yahoo.com).  October 31, 2007.

Ecuador/Canada

Antibiotics

The M&M Meat Shop in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada, has recalled packages of its breaded, coconut shrimp because they contained nitrofurans (banned antibiotics).  The product, produced by Henry H. Misner, Ltd., in Port Dover, Ontario, Canada, originated in Ecuador.  The Canadian Food Inspection Agency discovered the nitrofurans during routine testing.

Source: CBC News.  M&M Meat Shops offer refund for recalled shrimp (http://www.cbc.ca/canada/prince-edward-island/story/2007/11/06/shrimp-recall.html#skip300x250).  November 6, 2007.

India

Specific Pathogen Free Shrimp

The Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) is set to produce specific pathogen free (SPF) shrimp in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (owned by India, but off the southwest coast of Thailand).

MPEDA chairman G. Mohan Kumar said there has been no significant growth in the production of tiger shrimp (Penaeus monodon) in India for several years because of the whitespot virus that began attacking shrimp farms in 1995.  MPEDA found that wild tiger shrimp around the Andaman and Nicobar Islands were free of whitespot, while the infection rate among wild tigers off the coast of the state of Andhra Pradesh was 91 percent.  MPEDA is demanding a total ban on shrimp culture on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to protect its wild shrimp from viruses.

Source: The FishSite.  Smart shrimp a bone of contention (http://www.thefishsite.com/fishnews/5598/smart-shrimp-a-bone-of-contention).  November 1, 2007.

Mexico

Sonora

Thanks to new technologies and control over diseases, the state of Sonora has consolidated its position as the number one shrimp producing state in Mexico.  In 2006, it produced a record 66,000 metric tons of shrimp worth more than $320 million.

Most farmed shrimp from Sonora is not exported.  It’s harvested at small sizes (51-60 to 71-90) and sold in local markets.  Only a small portion of this shrimp reaches international markets.

Daniel Gutierrez Perez, president for the State Association of Private Aquaculture, said that Sonora currently has 18,000 hectares of shrimp ponds.  He said that 2007 production would probably be around 66,000 metric tons.

Source: Seafood.com (an online, subscription-based, fisheries news service).  Sonora farmed shrimp production tops 66,000 tons in 2006—but almost all for local markets.  Translated by Angel Rubio Canas.  Editor and Publisher, John Sackton (phone 781-861-1441, email jsackton@seafood.com).  November 7, 2007.

Mexico

Sinaloa

Despite damage caused by storms and extreme temperature changes, shrimp farms in the state of Sinaloa will finish the year with good production numbers.  Presently, the northcentral region of the state has harvested approximately 22,000 hectares that generated an estimated 34,000 metric tons of shrimp.  The harvest, about 90 percent completed by the end of October 2007, will end by mid-November.  “We estimate there are only 2,000 hectares left to harvest,” said Roberto Arozemena Villareal, director of the Aquaculture Institute of Sinaloa.

Arozemena said Sinaloa produces two crops per year, but that the best results are obtained with the first crop with harvests up to a metric ton per hectare.  He said that that whitespot and other diseases have been almost completely eradicated.  Arozemena said the prices for farmed shrimp should be good this year because wild shrimp production was down and didn’t saturate the domestic market.  He said that prices for 31-35 and 36-40 count, whole shrimp could reach $4 per kilo.

Source: Seafood.com (an online, subscription-based, fisheries news service).  90 percent of first cycle of Sinaloa shrimp harvested yielding 34,000 tons.  Translated by Angel Rubio Canas.  Ken Coons (phone 781-861-1441, email kencoons@seafood.com).  Editor and Publisher, John Sackton (phone 781-861-1441, email jsackton@seafood.com).  October 31, 2007.

Pakistan

New Money for Fisheries, Aquaculture and Shrimp Farming

The government has launched a new $32 million national fisheries program under which model shrimp farms will be established and existing shrimp hatcheries will be renovated.  It will provide 20 percent of the financing for new shrimp farms.

Source: Daily Times.  National Fisheries Policy Strategy announced (http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007%5C11%5C03%5Cstory_3-11-2007_pg5_1).  Ijaz Kakakhel.  November 3, 2007.

Peru

Fish Meal Prices Stable in October 2007

In October 2007, prices of Peruvian fish meal did not rise, probably because China has inventories of approximately 190,000 metric tons and Peru has stockpiled 100,000 tons.  Most of Peru’s inventories, however, are of lower quality product for the livestock industry.  In late October, Peruvian meal was selling for about $1,000 a ton.

Source: Seafood.com (an online, subscription-based, fisheries news service).  Prices of Peruvian fish meal stable in China last month due to heavy inventories.  Editor and Publisher, John Sackton (phone 781-861-1441, email jsackton@seafood.com).  November 5, 2007.

United States

California—Shrimp News International

The search feature for this site is temporarily out of commission.  I'm working on it!

Source: Bob Rosenberry, Shrimp News International, November 16, 2007.

United States

Texas—Craig Upstrom, Aquaculture of Texas

The Texas Aquaculture Association would like to recognize Craig Upstrom of Aquaculture of Texas, Inc., the largest freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) hatchery in the USA, for surviving in a tough industry for 21 years.  Upstrom manages and is the majority shareholder in the hatchery, which is housed in a 15,000 square foot, metal building on Highway IH-20 just west of Fort Worth.  It can produce six million postlarvae a year.  Upstrom, who runs the hatchery with one part-time assistant, says that it takes about $100,000 to pay the bills each year, but somehow it gets done.  Currently, he’s attempting to develop a genetics program and a larval diet to replace expensive Artemia.  Dr. Delbert Gatlin, of TAMU’s Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences Department plans to visit Upstrom to explore the possibility of placing some undergraduate interns in the hatchery during the summer to work on needed research.

Two other prawn hatcheries have been built in the Eastern USA recently, and they have cut into Upstrom’s sales.

In Texas, harvested prawns sell for about $8 a pound.

Information: Craig Upstrom, Aquaculture of Texas, Inc. (http://www.aquacultureoftexas.com).

Source: Email to Shrimp News International from Granvil Treece.  Aquaculture of Texas, Inc., Weatherford, Texas, in business for 21 years.  Granvil Treece.  November 5, 2007.

Vietnam

Asian Pacific Aquaculture 2007 Trade Show

At Asian Pacific Aquaculture 2007 (Hanoi, Vietnam, August 2007), Novus Aqua announced that it was developing “Mera Pak”, a total replacement for fish meal.

Also at the trade show, Japan’s Higashimaru Company, well known for its larval shrimp feeds, announced that it will soon start producing its “Higashi” feeds in Vietnam.

Source: Aqua Culture AsiaPacific (Editor/Publisher, Zuridah Merican, email zuridah@aquaasiapac.com, webpage www.aquaasiapac.com).  Trade show at Asian Pacific Aquaculture 2007/Exciting markets in Vietnam and Asia Pacific.  Volume 3, Number 5, Page 26, September/October 2007.