Catfish

Bowers Fish Farm

Continuing the Tradition...

Bowers Shrimp has produced some of the highest quality Pacific White Shrimp for 17 years. Now, Bowers Shrimp has diversified its corporation to include Channel Catfish into their farming operations.

Introduction

In 2004, Bowers Fish Farm (BFF) took over an existing farm consisting of 84 water acres and experimented with a small hatchery, which produced about 1 million fry. Since this endeavor proved to be both successful and profitable, in 2005 BFF expanded the farm by 200 acres (65 acres of fry ponds & 135 acres of food fish ponds), bringing the total farm acreage to 300 acres. This same year, the hatchery expanded 12-fold producing over 12 million fry. In 2006, BFF expanded again adding 126 acres bringing the total farm acreage to 426 acres.

Hatchery

During the hatchery season, eggs are usually laid in mid to late April. Depending on maturity, the eggs will usually hatch in 7-8 days. The baby fish are hatched with a sac containing nutrients called sac fry. Over an additional 7-8 day period, the yoke sac is absorbed and the fry begin to swim to the surface in search for food. The fry are considered swim-up fry at this point. After all fry have surfaced and have eaten food for about 2-5 days, they are stocked in ponds. Stock pond densities are usually 100,000-200,000 fry/ac. To accommodate fingering customers, some fry are vaccinated in the hatchery before being transferred to the stock ponds.

Fingerlings

After the fry are stocked in the ponds, they are not seen for about 1-2 weeks. Upon close examination, the fry can be seen feeding immediately after they are fed. At this point, they are considered fingerlings and are usually 1-2 inches long. The fingerlings are fed three times a day for the first two months, and then they are fed twice a day for several more months. In about 45 days, the fingerlings will reach 3-4 inches. At 3-4 inches, the fingerlings are ready for sale, but are usually sold between the sizes of 2-9 inches.

Benefits of Hatchery

The implementation of the hatchery has been an additional benefit to the local fish farmers. In the past, local farmers were forced to purchase fingerlings out of the state. However with a local hatchery, freight and shipping costs are reduced and stress on the fish, from lengthy transportation, is almost eliminated, Thus, fingerlings eat regularly the next day after delivery and the survival rate is increased.

Grow-out and Harvest

Bowers Fish Farm supplies fingerlings to themselves and to local farmers. The fingerlings are stocked directly into grow-out ponds where they will remain for 8-12 months. Once the fingerlings reach about a pound in size, they are usually considered food fish. When the food fish reach marketable size (1 1/2-2lbs), they are sold to processing plants nationwide.

Processing and Quality

In the very near future, the Bowers Corporation also plans to establish a processing plant. A local catfish processing plant would be another asset to all Texas catfish farmers. This added facility will significantly reduce freight cost and provide a stable market for local farmers. Since quality is our priority, this plant will additionally ensure that Texas' catfish will be distributed nationwide with the highest standards of flavor and freshness. A hatchery, grow-out ponds, and a future processing plant, enables BFF to closely monitor the development, growth, and processing of our catfish. This attention to detail, from the growth of the egg to your plate, ensures you , the customer, will receive the highest quality of seafood.

Welcome About Us Our Product In the News Location Request Information Tex Mar

Bowers Shrimp

24781 SH 35 S.

Palacios, TX 77465

Phone-(361) 972-2414

Fax-(361) 972-2422

e-mail: bowers@bowershrimp.com