North Central Regional Aquaculture Center

Funded Project #7 - Hybrid Striped Bass Aquaculture

The seventh Hybrid Striped Bass Funded Project.  Chaired by Chris Kohler

Objectives:

1. Marketing

a. Investigate and document current and potential demand (prices and quantities) for hybrid striped bass (live and processed), clearly identifying consumer groups, processors, and distributors by location, seasonality of demand, size preferences, unique demand attributes, i.e., “healer fish” in Chinese culture, and impact of increased supplies on market prices of hybrid striped bass and competitive species.

b. Estimate the processing and distribution costs (supply chain costs and margins) to derive expected “farm gate live weight” prices as a function of producer and consumer locations.

c. Conduct limited taste testing on hybrid striped bass to determine the effect of different feed rations.

d. Develop a Web page that would be a component of the NCRAC Web site that would provide analysis results to clientele quickly and to allow easy updates.

e. Design and investigate willingness of hybrid striped bass producers to become a part of a current market information system.

2.  Compare phase III production parameters and feed costs of hybrid striped bass/sunshine bass (female white bass H male striped bass) in ponds and recirculating aquaculture systems using commercially available diets (32, 36, and 40% protein) in a minimum of two locations (three feed treatments/location), with 100 g " 20 g phase III fish (minimum of three replications/treatment), in ponds at least 0.04 ha (0.1 acre), with a stocking density of 7,413 fish/ha (3,000 fish/acre), or in tanks at least 1.83 L/tank (500 gal/tank) with a 60 g/L (0.5 lb/gal) at harvest loading density. A need also exists to identify cost-effective, commercial available diets for phase III production.

Participants:

Project Outline (187K pdf file)

Report (50K pdf file)