Going small may be the key to putting more farm-raised perch and bluegill onto plates in restaurants and homes. Not smaller fish but smaller aquaculture operations.
One of the presentations during the 20th annual Wisconsin Aquaculture Conference that takes place Friday and Saturday in Marshfield will address how small operations can use Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) grants for research and value added products, given by Bill West, who owns Blue Iris Fish Farm in Black Creek.
West has used grants to research aspects of raising perch and bluegill on his farm, which includes nine ponds and a pond-side tank system he’s developed.
Results of one of West’s research projects showed that perch raised in tanks utilizing flow-through water may not take up parasites, such as yellow grub and black spot, even if exposed to water that is known to be infested with those parasites.
When raising fish in ponds, there are any number of problems to overcome. Unwanted aquatic species to name one; that’s why West says he’s going to bring in a 100,000 walleye fry to help clean out a pond that’s filled with bullheads, green sunfish, shiners and everything else besides what he wants.
“My last-ditch effort to avoid draining everything down is to bring in the walleye and over a five-year period have them clean it out and then maybe I’ll harvest them.”
Unwanted species, diseases and parasites carried into ponds by birds and other animals are just part of the difficulties facing anyone trying to make a living raising domestic fish such as perch and bluegill.
Other species such as tilapia, trout and salmon have proven more profitable. Among other factors, tilapia’s hardiness, trout’s long history and years of research, and salmon’s popularity all push them to the top of the profitability market in the world of aquaculture.
West says it can take three years to get perch and bluegill to market size, but through research and practical experience, he’s figured out how to get them into deep fryers in less than a year if he had, or could find someone with, an indoor tank system.
Generally, perch spawn in April, hatch in May and have until September to reach market length about 8 inches.
“I can get fish that are 4 or 5 inches by that time,” West said. “A perch, a female that’s growing, will grow an inch a month. If I had an indoor system, or somebody had an indoor system who knew how to do it, I could transfer those fish in September right to those people and they’d be on the table for Lent. But there’s nobody doing that.”
Without any genetic modifications, West can obtain 50 percent yield from perch raised on his farm through proper diet and reduced stress of surviving predators and cold weather.
West says some people aren’t happy about harvesting ocean fish to make food for fish farms, but vegetarian diets don’t work for carnivores like perch and walleye.
“I’m also looking at how fast I spin the water,” said West. “The more they swim the more muscle and protein they put on.”
Another way to help offset aquaculture costs is to make use of the fish remains after it has been fileted.
Enter Liquid Gold, a fertilizer that is made by turning the guts of the fish inside out and allowing the enzymes to break down the fish carcass, the same way a walleye’s stomach dissolves a minnow.
“This (Liquid Gold sales) adds about 30 percent to the value of the filet. So we could sell this and use that money to buy (fish) feed,” said West. “It’s not a fish emulsion, a fish emulsion stinks.”
The resulting mixture is sprayed on gardens like other fertilizers.
Despite his continuing improvements in fish farming practices, West hasn’t closed the gap on competing with wild-caught perch from a price standpoint. Perch caught in the wild, processed, shipped to distributors and then to restaurants are still cheaper than what West can produce at Blue Iris.
However, the growing interest in eating locally sourced foods (sometimes known as locavores) and community supported agriculture (CSA) could play into aquaculture’s favor. Locavores, CSA members and those who seek out organic foods are generally willing to pay a premium price for food they believe is of a higher quality.
“I would grow for a restaurant if they specifically wanted farm-raised perch,” said West.
West didn’t always think small would be big, saying that 10 years ago he was on the bandwagon that big production facilities was best for the aquaculture industry.
Now, he believes that a farmer who has a quarter-acre pond could raise 10,000 fish a year in that pond using the techniques and systems he’s developed at Blue Iris. All of which he’s willing to share.
“I’m too old to start a company for profit,” said West. “As long as I stay cost neutral, I’ll stay in business. I’m doing what I do to help the industry.”
He’ll have a booth at the conference where he will share all he knows about raising fish, SARE programs and anything else to help promote aquaculture to the next generation.
“What I want to do is give someone who’s 20 years old and wants to raise a family on this and give them the tools to do this,” said West. “I’ve got all kinds of stuff and I’ll just sit there and talk.”