Culture of Red Swamp Crawfish,Procambarus clarkii, in the U. S.Culture of Red Swamp Crawfish,Procambarus clarkii, in the U. S.

Distribution

Natural habitat - wetlands and swamps in southernU. S., especially in the Mississippi River drainage.

Dry wetland

Flooded wetland

Food habits - omnivore; small invertebrates,vegetation, detritus, attached algae

Reproduction• Sexual maturity - 6 to 8 months

• Male deposits sperm packet in female

• Water Temperature - between 70 and 800F, May and June in Alabama

• Female borrows into wet soil; eggs are laid and hatch inborrow; no larval stages, eggs hatch into tiny crawfish

• soils containing borrows must hold water well as crawfishand eggs must remain moist

• Females and young crawfish leave borrows in Fall during flooding

Chimneys protecting crawfish borrows

Female with young

Production cycle

1. Ponds drained in late spring to encourage maturecrawfish to mate and borrow

2. A forage crop is planted in dry pond, rice is a common choice.Rice can be planted only as a forage ( late planting ) or as agrain crop ( early planting ).

3. Pond is reflooded in the Fall when young crawfish are ready to forage.

4. Young crawfish forage on decaying vegetation and reach a harvestable size by early Spring.

recirculation pumpsupplypump

aerator

water supply

drain

Typical crawfish pond design

Crawfish ponds

Pumped well water splashed over screens to increase dissolved oxygen

Seeding Rice byplane

Rice Forage

Aquatic plants as forage

Decaying forage

Paddlewheel aerator to prevent lowdissolved oxygen due to decaying vegetation

Crawfish sample tocheck for harvest size

Harvest lane cutin forage to set traps

Crawfish trap

Running traps

Formulated Bait Pellets

Cut fresh fish bait

Harvest boat

Hydraulic wheels to move boat

Harvest boat crossinglevee

Producer grading crawfish tosize during harvest

Crawfish yields

800 to 1,000 kg/ha/yr

Harvested crawfish

Purging crawfish after harvest to clean intestines

Grading crawfish to size

Live crawfish transported to market

Crawfish processing plant

Peeling crawfishtail meat

Frozen tail meat

Frozen whole crawfish for export

Boiled Crawfish

Advantages1. feeds low on the food chain2. easy to reproduce and culture3. easy to transport live, moist and cool environment

Disadvantages1. high expense in harvest ( bait and labor )2. U. S. market is regional, some export to Europe3. low dressout percentage, 18 to 20% of whole animal are tails4. lower priced imports from China5. sale price depends on strength of the wild catch

In 1998 Louisiana produced 36.1 million lbsfrom 109,967 acres worth 22.5 million dollars.

90% of farmed crawfish in the U. S.

Louisiana

Trends in U.S. and World Lobster Production, Imports and Exports

Joel ChetrickForest & Fishery Products Division

August 2006

Summary• World production of lobster increased steadily

from 157,000 metric tons (MT) in 1980 to more than 233,000 MT in 1997 before stabilizing at levels near 230,000 MT through 2003 and rising to about 239,000 MT in 2004. Catches of American lobster (Homarus americanus) and spiny lobster (Panulirus spp.) accounted for 67 percent of world lobster production in 2004. Other important species included European lobster (Homarus gammarus) and rock lobster (Jasus spp.).

• The United States and Canada are the world’s largest lobster producing countries, accounting for 37 percent of global production in 2004. Other major producers included the United Kingdom, Australia, among others.

Summary

• In the United States, lobsters rank third in terms of commercial landed value for fishery products, trailing only the harvests of shrimp and crabs. American lobster accounted for 94 percent of U.S. lobster production, followed by spiny and slipper lobsters. Maine led all states, with 81 percent of the 40,079 MT of American lobster landed in 2004. Massachusetts and Rhode Island were also important producers of American lobster. Spiny lobster is harvested primarily in Florida and California.

• World exports and imports of lobster grew steadily over the last decade. World lobster exports rose 87 percent, from $1.2 billion in 1992 to $2.2 billion in 2004, due primarily to increased sales of frozen and fresh/chilled products. Canada was the major exporter of live lobster products with $371 million in 2004, followed by the United States with $300 million. World lobster imports increased 63 percent, from $1.3 billion in 1992 to $2.1 billion in 2004, due mainly to increased demand for frozen and particularly live products in the hotel and restaurant sector. The United States was the major importer of live lobster with $290 million in 2004, followed by Canada with $138 million, and France, Spain and Italy, each with imports exceeding $50 million. The United States remained the largest importer of all lobster products, accounting for $1 billion or nearly 47 percent of global imports, followed by Japan with $178 million.

Summary

• U.S. lobster exports grew by 245 percent in terms of value during 1992-2005, totaling $345 million in 2005, due to increased sales to Canada and the European Union (EU). Canada remained the largest market , accounting for 48 percent of export sales. Most U.S. exports to Canada are processed and then sent back to the U.S. market for domestic consumption or to be exported to other countries. Sales to the EU, the largest consumption market for U.S. lobster, accounted for 43 percent of the exports. U.S. imports of lobster reached $1.1 billion in 2005, up 119 percent from the 1992 level. Canada accounted for 64 percent of the imports.

• Lobster is a high-priced commodity with consumer preferences varying from country to country.

World Lobster Production by Country

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

Canada USA UK Australia Bahamas Brazil Ireland Indonesia Cuba France Others

Source: FAO

MT

World Lobster Production by Species

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

American Spiny Rock Others European

Source: FAO

MT

U.S. Lobster Production by Species

Source: NOAA/NMFS

MT

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

35,000

40,000

45,000

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

American Spiny

World Lobster Exports by Country

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

Canada Australia USA Bahamas Brazil Cuba New Zealand Others

Source: FAO

$Million

World Lobster Exports by Product

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

Live Fresh or Chilled Frozen Canned

$Million

Source: FAO

World Lobster Imports by Country

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

USA Japan France China Canada Spain Italy Others

Source: FAO

$Million

World Lobster Imports by Product

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

Live Fresh or Chilled Frozen Canned

$Million

Source: FAO

U.S. Lobster Trade

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Export Import

Source: NOAA/NMFS

$Million

Consumer Preferences• Worldwide:

- Lobster is a high-priced food primarily eaten primarily during holidays and special occasions, such as weddings and family celebrations.- Canadian lobster is smaller than the size the United States is legally allowed to produce and therefore is sometimes favored in markets where lobster is sold by the piece, such as Japan.

• Japan:- Spiny lobster

• Europe:- High-priced European lobster is preferred over any other lobster.- Spiny lobster is preferred in Spain. - U.S. lobster competes with the European lobster and Norwegian prawns in EU markets.

U.S. Industry Contacts

• Maine Lobster Promotion Council Tel. (207) 287-5140/ Fax (207) 287-5143

www.mainelobsterpromo.com• Maine International Trade Center

Tel. (207) 541-7400/ Fax (207) 541-7420www.mitc.com

• Massachusetts Lobstermen’s AssociationTel. (781) 545-6984/ Fax (781) 545-7837www.lobstermen.com/default.asp

• Food Export USA-NortheastTel. (215) 829-9111/ Fax (215) 829-9777www.foodexportusa.org