12/18/1995

AU-Developed Hybrid Catfish Will Make a Big Splash in U.S. Fish Industry

AUBURN, Ala. —An Auburn University-developed hybrid catfish, which has the potential to increase the Southeast's $2 billion catfish industry by at least 20 percent, will be used in large-scale commercial production for the first time in 1996.

A cross between female channel catfish and male blue catfish, the hybrids grow faster, are more resistant to common fish diseases, have a higher survival rate and are easier to remove from ponds by netting or angling. After more than 20 years of research through the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, the first large-scale attempt to produce these hybrids will occur next spring at two Alabama fish farms and a GoldKist breeding facility in Mississippi.

"I'm confident that this fish will ultimately impact the industry in a big way," said Rex Dunham, a professor in the AU Department of Fisheries and Allied Aquacultures.

"It grows from 20 to 100 percent faster than a normal channel catfish in a pond environment, depending on the conditions," added Dunham, who conducted much of the research on the hybrid catfish. "These benefits become greater in the higher stocking densities and more stressful growing environments commonly found in commercial catfish ponds."

Research began at AU in the 1970s to perfect techniques for producing the hybrid. Blue catfish and channel catfish do not mate naturally, so a major hurdle was developing artificial fertilization techniques to hatch enough hybrid fingerlings for production on a commercial scale. Another big question was, can this labor-intensive system be used competitively, compared to the traditional system for producing channel catfish?

The breeding methods developed at Auburn proved not only to be competitive, but to provide increased profits for the catfish industry, according to Ron Phelps, an associate professor of fisheries who conducted studies on the economics of producing hybrid catfish. The intensive labor required to fertilize hybrid eggs is compensated by the greater efficiency of using artificial breeding techniques, as well as the hybrid catfish's growth and survival advantages, Phelps said.

In the production of straight channel catfish, the most commonly grown catfish, fish are allowed to spawn naturally in ponds. Fertilized eggs are removed from ponds and incubated in indoor tanks; fish fry are raised indoors until they are large enough to release back into ponds as fingerlings. In the artificial technique, female channel catfish are injected with a natural hormone to induce them to produce eggs. The eggs are removed from each fish and mixed with blue catfish sperm; fertilized eggs are incubated in indoor tanks.

"Typically, only half the brood channel catfish may spawn naturally in ponds," Phelps said. "Using the artificial technique, about 90 percent of the females ovulate, resulting in a significant increase in the number of fry produced per acre of brood fish." From the time they hatch to the time they are harvested, overall survival is about 30 percent better in the hybrid fish, Dunham said.

In his study of the economics of hybrid production, Phelps evaluated the process from spawning to harvest. He found that hybrid fingerlings can be produced at the same price as channel catfish fingerlings. Fingerlings are generally produced at a specialized breeding facility and sold to fish farmers. Phelps found that fingerling producers can ask a higher price for the hybrid fish, and farmers can still increase their profits.

"Channel catfish fingerlings are sold for 1.5 cents per inch," Phelps said. "The hybrid fingerlings can be sold for up to 2.5 cents per inch, and still allow a catfish farmer to make a 10 percent better profit."

Beyond these benefits for fingerling producers and fish farmers, hybrid catfish also have advantages for catfish processors, Dunham said. They have higher "dress-out" weight.

"Processors would gain from one to four percent more edible flesh from each fish," Dunham added. "This is a considerable advantage when you're processing millions of pounds of fish."

"The market for catfish was once for the three-quarter pound dressed fish," Phelps added. "But with shortages of marine fish, there is a strong demand for an alternative white meat filet. Catfish must be grown to a larger size to serve as filets, which makes the hybrid's growth advantage even more important."

About 1.5 billion fingerlings are produced in the U.S. each year. U.S. total catfish acreage is 158,640 acres, most of which are in Mississippi. Farm gate value of the nation's catfish crop is $360 million; catfish processing accounts for another $516 million. Value-added catfish products, such as breaded filets, are worth millions more.

Alabama is the second largest catfish producer with approximately 18,500 acres in ponds. There are an estimated 50 Alabama catfish producers, including those who grow brood fish, fingerlings and food fish. Catfish production is worth $60 million to Alabama farmers, and catfish processing is valued at $105 million in the state. About 75 million pounds of catfish were sold in the state in 1994.

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News from:

Office of Ag Communications & Marketing

Auburn University College of Agriculture
Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station
3 Comer Hall, Auburn University
Auburn, AL 36849
334-844-4877 (PHONE) 334-844-5892 (FAX)

Contact Jamie Creamer, 334-844-2783 or jcreamer@auburn.edu
by Robyn Hearn

Dec. 18, 1995