Catfish Production - Release - 02-03-2017

Catfish Production
ISSN: 1948-271X

Released February 3, 2017, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department
of Agriculture (USDA).

Catfish Value of Sales Up 6 percent from 2015
Catfish growers in the United States had sales of 386 million dollars during 2016, up 6 percent from 364 million dollars
the previous year. The top four States (Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, and Texas) accounted for 96 percent of the
United States total sales. The United States total foodsize sales of 363 million dollars increased by 5 percent from the
previous year. Sales of stockers totaled 5.48 million dollars in 2016, compared to 8.88 million dollars in 2015. Fingerling
and fry sales totaled 16.9 million dollars, up 9.10 million dollars from 2015.
By point of first sale, direct sales to processors accounted for 94.2 percent of total foodsize fish sales, down 2 percent
from the previous year. Direct sales to other producers accounted for 78.0 percent of stocker sales compared to
82.9 percent in 2015.

Water Surface Acres Down 4 Percent from January 1, 2016
The water surface acres being used for catfish production as of January 1, 2017, totaled 60.8 thousand acres, down
4 percent from the 63.0 thousand acres used a year earlier. Of the total acres, 2.05 thousand are to be renovated during the
period of January 1 to June 30, 2017. An additional 835 acres are under construction or expected to be constructed and in
use by July 1, 2017. During the period of July 1 through December 31, 2016, the area taken out of production totaled
2.73 thousand acres. As of January 1, 2017, foodsize fish were produced on 49.1 thousand acres, fingerling producing
acres totaled 7.50 thousand, and 1.88 thousand acres were being used for broodfish production.

Inventory Numbers
Catfish producers had 590 thousand broodfish on hand January 1, 2017, up 13 percent from January 1, 2016. Large
foodsize fish on hand totaled 3.56 million on January 1, 2017, up 1 percent from a year ago. The number of medium
foodsize fish were up 12 percent to 51.5 million, while small foodsize fish numbers are down 31 percent to 69.6 million.
Large stockers on hand January 1, 2017, at 96.4 million fish, were up 35 percent from the previous year. Small stocker
numbers were up 45 percent to 196 million. There were 269 million fingerlings on hand January 1, 2017, down 14 percent
from January 1, 2016.

Catfish Water Surface Acres Used for Production and Total Sales – States and
United States: 2015-2017
Water surface acres
used for production
during January 1 - June 30

State

Total sales

2016

2017

2015

2016

(acres)

(acres)

(1,000 dollars)

(1,000 dollars)

Alabama ..................................
Arkansas ..................................
California .................................
Mississippi ...............................
North Carolina ..........................
Texas .......................................

15,000
5,000
1,400
36,100
1,300
2,000

15,000
5,000
1,300
34,400
1,200
1,900

108,866
18,456
5,774
201,450
3,878
18,123

119,989
19,086
5,230
213,372
4,164
17,722

Other States 1 ..........................

2,240

1,990

7,063

6,422

United States ...........................

63,040

60,790

363,610

385,985

1

Other States include State estimates not shown and States suppressed due to disclosure.

Catfish Water Surface Acre Usage – States and United States: 2015-2017
Acres intended for utilization during January 1 - June 30
State

Foodsize

Fingerlings

Currently under
or scheduled for:

Broodfish

Renovation

New construction

Acres taken out
of production
during
July 1 December 31

2016

2017

2016

2017

2016

2017

2016

2017

2016

2017

2015

2016

(acres)

(acres)

(acres)

(acres)

(acres)

(acres)

(acres)

(acres)

(acres)

(acres)

(acres)

(acres)

Alabama ............
Arkansas ............
California ...........
Mississippi .........
North Carolina ....
Texas .................

14,500
3,300
1,100
26,700
1,100
1,800

14,700
3,300
930
26,300
1,100
1,700

260
1,400
190
6,200
70
80

100
1,200
160
5,400
60
65

30
230
60
1,300
(D)
100

10
180
45
1,400
(D)
65

260
270
135
2,300
65
140

270
180
80
1,400
35
50

(D)
20
65
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
600
(D)
(D)

310
175
(D)
710
(D)
690

280
400
140
1,300
(D)
320

Other States 1 ....

1,315

1,090

555

510

190

180

100

30

115

235

220

285

United States .....

49,815

49,120

8,755

7,495

1,910

1,880

3,270

2,045

200

835

2,105

2,725

- Represents zero.
(D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations.
1
Other States include State estimates not shown and States suppressed due to disclosure.

2

Catfish Production (February 2017)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

Catfish, Foodsize Inventory by Size Category – States and United States: January 1, 2016 and 2017
Live weight

Number of fish

Size category
and State

Total

Average

2016

2017

2016

2017

2016

(1,000)

(1,000)

(1,000 pounds)

(1,000 pounds)

2017

(pounds per fish) (pounds per fish)

Large foodsize
Alabama ......................................
Arkansas .....................................
California .....................................
Mississippi ...................................
North Carolina .............................
Texas ...........................................

1,500
300
210
910
155
310

1,500
210
(D)
1,350
90
220

5,600
1,000
670
3,100
548
1,120

5,800
692
(D)
4,950
294
855

3.7
3.3
3.2
3.4
3.5
3.6

3.9
3.3
(D)
3.7
3.3
3.9

Other States 1 ..............................

140

190

565

667

4.0

3.5

United States ...............................

3,525

3,560

12,603

13,258

3.6

3.7

Medium foodsize
Alabama ......................................
Arkansas .....................................
California .....................................
Mississippi ...................................
North Carolina .............................
Texas ...........................................

13,100
2,660
770
23,100
860
4,910

13,400
2,570
590
28,700
710
5,240

25,300
4,850
2,100
41,700
1,650
9,600

27,200
4,700
1,060
50,700
1,200
10,700

1.9
1.8
2.7
1.8
1.9
2.0

2.0
1.8
1.8
1.8
1.7
2.0

Other States 1 ..............................

505

300

990

594

2.0

2.0

United States ...............................

45,905

51,510

86,190

96,154

1.9

1.9

Small foodsize
Alabama ......................................
Arkansas .....................................
California .....................................
Mississippi ...................................
North Carolina .............................
Texas ...........................................

24,900
4,380
1,540
65,400
1,950
1,850

22,500
3,620
(D)
38,300
1,640
1,100

25,300
4,300
1,380
64,800
2,350
1,690

23,700
3,500
(D)
39,400
1,590
1,040

1.0
1.0
0.9
1.0
1.2
0.9

1.1
1.0
(D)
1.0
1.0
0.9

Other States 1 ..............................

1,100

2,450

1,080

2,243

1.0

0.9

United States ...............................

101,120

69,610

100,900

71,473

1.0

1.0

Total foodsize
Alabama ......................................
Arkansas .....................................
California .....................................
Mississippi ...................................
North Carolina .............................
Texas ...........................................

39,500
7,340
2,520
89,410
2,965
7,070

37,400
6,400
2,240
68,350
2,440
6,560

56,200
10,150
4,150
109,600
4,548
12,410

56,700
8,892
2,739
95,050
3,084
12,595

(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)

(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)

Other States 1 ..............................

1,745

1,290

2,635

1,825

(NA)

(NA)

United States ...............................

150,550

124,680

199,693

180,885

(NA)

(NA)

(D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations.
(NA) Not available.
1
Other States include State estimates not shown and States suppressed due to disclosure.

Catfish Production (February 2017)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

3

Catfish, Stockers and Fingerlings Inventory by Size Category – States and United States:
January 1, 2016 and 2017
Size category
and State

Live weight

Number of fish
2016
(1,000)

Total

2017
(1,000)

2016

Average
2017

2016

2017

(1,000 pounds)

(1,000 pounds)

(pounds per
1,000 fish)

(pounds per
1,000 fish)

Large stockers
Alabama ......................................
Arkansas .....................................
California .....................................
Mississippi ..................................
North Carolina .............................
Texas ..........................................

22,000
7,500
(D)
37,100
1,980
510

34,400
7,280
360
48,200
4,100
510

11,100
2,400
(D)
11,700
1,090
181

11,900
2,600
117
19,800
2,300
256

505
320
(D)
315
551
355

346
357
325
411
561
502

Other States 1 .............................

2,415

1,585

845

523

350

330

United States ..............................

71,505

96,435

27,316

37,496

382

389

Small stockers
Alabama ......................................
Arkansas .....................................
California .....................................
Mississippi ..................................
North Carolina .............................
Texas ..........................................

26,400
25,800
850
72,100
4,200
(D)

45,400
23,000
(D)
120,000
(D)
(D)

2,900
2,700
86
7,350
554
(D)

4,300
2,500
(D)
11,000
(D)
(D)

109.8
104.7
101.2
101.9
131.9
(D)

94.7
108.7
(D)
91.7
(D)
(D)

Other States 1 .............................

5,035

7,105

454

651

90.2

91.6

United States ..............................

134,385

195,505

14,044

18,451

104.5

94.4

Total stockers
Alabama ......................................
Arkansas .....................................
California .....................................
Mississippi ..................................
North Carolina .............................
Texas ..........................................

48,400
33,300
(D)
109,200
6,180
(D)

79,800
30,280
(D)
168,200
(D)
(D)

14,000
5,100
(D)
19,050
1,644
(D)

16,200
5,100
(D)
30,800
(D)
(D)

(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)

(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)
(NA)

Other States 1 .............................

8,810

13,660

1,566

3,847

(NA)

(NA)

United States ..............................

205,890

291,940

41,360

55,947

(NA)

(NA)

Fingerlings
Alabama ......................................
Arkansas .....................................
California .....................................
Mississippi ..................................
North Carolina .............................
Texas ..........................................

48,200
24,600
2,620
220,000
4,250
(D)

35,200
27,400
1,990
188,000
1,550
380

1,680
741
53
7,050
166
(D)

1,670
1,090
41
5,050
58
9

34.9
30.1
20.2
32.0
39.1
(D)

47.4
39.8
20.6
26.9
37.4
23.7

Other States 1 .............................

13,900

14,900

448

595

32.2

39.9

United States ..............................

313,570

269,420

10,138

8,513

32.3

31.6

(D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations.
(NA) Not available.
1
Other States include State estimates not shown and States suppressed due to disclosure.

4

Catfish Production (February 2017)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

Catfish, Broodfish Inventory by Size Category – States and United States: January 1, 2016 and 2017
Live weight

Number of fish

Size category
and State

Total

Average

2016

2017

2016

2017

2016

(1,000)

(1,000)

(1,000 pounds)

(1,000 pounds)

2017

(pounds per fish) (pounds per fish)

Broodfish
Alabama ......................................
Arkansas .....................................
California .....................................
Mississippi ...................................
North Carolina .............................
Texas ...........................................

10
55
(D)
380
(D)
(D)

15
60
(D)
450
(D)
(D)

24
232
(D)
1,960
(D)
(D)

27
244
(D)
2,400
(D)
(D)

2.4
4.2
(D)
5.2
(D)
(D)

1.8
4.1
(D)
5.3
(D)
(D)

Other States 1 ..............................

75

65

382

301

5.1

4.6

United States ...............................

520

590

2,598

2,972

5.0

5.0

(D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations.
1
Other States include State estimates not shown and States suppressed due to disclosure.

Catfish Production (February 2017)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

5

Catfish Sales – States and United States: 2015 and 2016
Live weight
Size category
and State

Number of fish
2015

Sales

Total

Average

2016

2015

2016

(1,000)

(1,000)

(1,000
pounds)

(1,000
pounds)

Foodsize
Alabama ..................
Arkansas .................
California .................
Mississippi ..............
North Carolina .........
Texas ......................

63,000
9,560
1,050
110,000
2,120
7,880

62,300
10,300
1,150
105,000
1,930
8,020

107,500
14,500
2,200
171,700
3,250
15,600

109,000
16,300
1,640
172,000
3,500
15,400

1.7
1.5
2.1
1.6
1.5
2.0

Other States 1 .........

1,900

1,880

2,694

2,334

United States ..........

195,510

190,580

317,444

320,174

(1,000)

(1,000)

(1,000
pounds)

(1,000
pounds)

2015

Average price
per pound

Total
2016

2015

2016

2015

2016

(1,000
dollars)

(1,000
dollars)

(dollars)

(dollars)

1.7
1.6
1.4
1.6
1.8
1.9

108,575
15,225
5,632
190,587
3,803
17,940

119,900
16,952
5,051
196,080
4,060
17,402

1.01
1.05
2.56
1.11
1.17
1.15

1.10
1.04
3.08
1.14
1.16
1.13

1.4

1.2

4,618

3,953

1.71

1.69

1.6

1.7

346,380

363,398

1.09

1.14

(1,000
dollars)

(1,000
dollars)

(pounds per (pounds per
fish)
fish)

(pounds per (pounds per
1,000 fish) 1,000 fish)

(dollars)

(dollars)

Stockers
Alabama ..................
Arkansas .................
California .................
Mississippi ..............
North Carolina .........
Texas ......................

(D)
(D)
(D)
33,400
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
3,650
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
109
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
4,709
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
1.29
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

Other States 1 .........

28,145

30,795

3,015

3,444

107

112

4,167

5,477

1.38

1.59

United States ..........

61,545

30,795

6,665

3,444

108

112

8,876

5,477

1.33

1.59

Fingerlings and fry
Alabama ..................
Arkansas .................
California .................
Mississippi ..............
North Carolina .........
Texas ......................

690
9,870
670
101,000
(D)
(D)

400
15,800
780
165,000
(D)
(D)

15
262
9
3,600
(D)
(D)

16
472
11
6,650
(D)
(D)

21.7
26.5
13.4
35.6
(D)
(D)

40.0
29.9
14.1
40.3
(D)
(D)

115
383
63
5,724
(D)
(D)

86
1,416
103
13,766
(D)
(D)

7.65
1.46
6.95
1.59
(D)
(D)

5.35
3.00
9.35
2.07
(D)
(D)

Other States 1 .........

18,840

12,550

648

460

34.4

36.7

1,532

1,542

2.36

3.35

United States ..........

131,070

194,530

4,534

7,609

34.6

39.1

7,817

16,913

1.72

2.22

(D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations.
1
Other States include State estimates not shown and States suppressed due to disclosure.

6

Catfish Production (February 2017)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

Catfish, Broodfish Sales – States and United States: 2015 and 2016
Live weight
Size category
and State

Number of fish
2015
(1,000)

Total

Sales
Average

Average price
per pound

Total

2016

2015

2016

2015

2016

2015

2016

2015

2016

(1,000)

(1,000
pounds)

(1,000
pounds)

(pounds
per fish)

(pounds
per fish)

(1,000
dollars)

(1,000
dollars)

(dollars)

(dollars)

Broodfish
Alabama ..................
Arkansas .................
California .................
Mississippi ...............
North Carolina .........
Texas .......................

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)
(D)

Other States 1 ..........

65

30

342

143

5.3

4.8

537

197

1.57

1.38

United States ...........

65

30

342

143

5.3

4.8

537

197

1.57

1.38

- Represents zero.
(D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations.
1
Other States include State estimates not shown and States suppressed due to disclosure.

Catfish Production (February 2017)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

7

Catfish, Foodsize and Stockers Percent Sold by Point of First Sale – United States: 2015 and 2016
[Point of First Sale by outlet may not add to 100 percent due to rounding]
Size category

Recreational
stocking

Processors

Live haulers
and brokers

Retail
outlets

Other
outlets

2015

2016

2015

2016

2015

2016

2015

2016

2015

2016

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

95.7

94.2

0.5

0.3

1.8

2.5

0.9

0.7

1.1

2.2

Foodsize
United States ..............

Wholesale to
other producers

Recreational
stocking

Live haulers
and brokers

Government
agencies

Other
outlets

2015

2016

2015

2016

2015

2016

2015

2016

2015

2016

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

(percent)

82.9

78.0

10.0

11.1

3.6

6.7

0.8

2.2

2.6

2.0

Stockers
United States ..............

Terms and Definitions Used for Catfish Production Estimates
Broodfish: Fish kept for egg production, including males. Broodfish produce the fertilized eggs, which go to hatcheries.
The most desirable size is 3 to 10 pounds or 4 to 6 years of age.
Fingerlings: Fish weighing 2 to 60 pounds per 1,000 fish or 2 to 6 inches in length.
Foodsize (large): Fish weighing over 3 pounds.
Foodsize (medium): Fish weighing over one and one-half pounds to 3 pounds.
Foodsize (small): Fish weighing over three-fourths of a pound to one and one-half pounds.
Fry: Fish weighing less than 2 pounds per 1,000 fish or less than 2 inches in length.
Stockers (large): Fish weighing over 180 pounds to 750 pounds per 1,000 fish.
Stockers (small): Fish weighing over 60 pounds to 180 pounds per 1,000 fish or over 6 inches in length.

8

Catfish Production (February 2017)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

Terms and Definitions Used to Describe Point of First Sale
Government Agencies: Sales to Federal, State, or local government agencies for the purpose of stocking public waters.
Live Hauler/Broker: Sales made to an individual or company that generally purchases live fish from a producer and
transports them in an oxygenated tank truck to other outlets.
Other Outlets: Sales to outlets not meeting one of the other defined outlets.
Point of First Sale Outlet: The first point at which money changes hands.
Processors: Sales made directly to a plant for processing.
Recreational Stocking: Only includes fish sold to individuals or private entities for the sole purpose of stocking
recreational waters.
Retail Outlets: Fish sold directly to entities who buy fish to re-sell to consumers. Includes grocers, restaurants, and fish
markets.
Wholesale to Other Producers: Fish sold to other producers for the intention of growing out for further sale at a later
time.

Statistical Methodology
Survey Procedures: Data for catfish production are collected from all known producers in the six published states and a
sample of producers from the remaining states. NASS Regional Field Offices maintain a list of all known catfish
producers and use known sources of producers to update their lists. Operators are mailed a questionnaire as close as
possible to January 1 and given adequate time to respond by mail. Those that do not respond by mail are telephoned or
possibly enumerated in person during the middle of January.
Estimation Procedures: Sound statistical methodology is employed to derive the estimates from reported data. All data
are analyzed for unusual values. Data from each operation are compared to their own past operating profile and to trends
from similar operations. Data for missing operations were estimated based on similar operations or historical data. NASS
Regional Field Offices prepare these estimates by using a combination of survey indications and historic trends.
Individual State estimates are reviewed by the Agricultural Statistics Board for reasonableness.
Revision policy: Estimates for the previous year are subject to revision when current estimates are made. Revisions are
the result of late or corrected data.
Reliability: In the six published states, catfish production estimates are based on a census of all known active producers
and therefore, have no sampling variability. However, since all operations in the other states category are not included in
the sample, survey estimates are subject to sampling variability. Survey results are also subject to errors such as
omissions, duplication, and mistakes in reporting, recording, and processing the data. While these errors cannot be
measured directly, they are minimized through strict quality controls in the data collection process and a careful review of
all reported data for consistency and reasonableness.

Catfish Production (February 2017)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

9

Information Contacts
Listed below are the commodity specialists in the Livestock Branch of the National Agricultural Statistics Service to
contact for additional information. E-mail inquiries may be sent to [email protected]
Dan Kerestes, Chief, Livestock Branch .......................................................................................................... (202) 720-3570
Bruce Boess, Head, Poultry and Specialty Commodities Section ................................................................... (202) 720-4447
Aaron Cosgrove – Catfish Production, Egg Products, Poultry Slaughter, Trout Production,
Turkey Hatchery, Turkeys Raised ........................................................................................................ (202) 690-3237
Alissa Cowell-Mytar – Cold Storage ........................................................................................................ (202) 720-4751
Tom Kruchten – Census of Aquaculture .................................................................................................. (202) 690-4870
Kim Linonis – Layers, Eggs ..................................................................................................................... (202) 690-8632
Joshua O’Rear – Cost of Pollination, Honey, Honey Bee Colonies .......................................................... (202) 690-3676
Miste Salmon – Broiler Hatchery, Chicken Hatchery, Mink .................................................................... (202) 720-3244

Access to NASS Reports
For your convenience, you may access NASS reports and products the following ways:
 All reports are available electronically, at no cost, on the NASS web site: www.nass.usda.gov
 Both national and state specific reports are available via a free e-mail subscription. To set-up this free
subscription, visit www.nass.usda.gov and click on “National” or “State” in upper right corner above “search”
box to create an account and select the reports you would like to receive.
For more information on NASS surveys and reports, call the NASS Agricultural Statistics Hotline at (800) 727-9540,
7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET, or e-mail: [email protected].

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applicable, political beliefs, marital status, familial or parental status, sexual orientation, or all or part of an individual's
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If you wish to file a Civil Rights program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination
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call (866) 632-9992 to request the form. You may also write a letter containing all of the information requested in the
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