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Ref:728/03 |
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united states
- May 13, 2003 |
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Optimism Among U.S.
Catfish Producers |
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SEAFOOD.COM NEWS [Delta Farm Press] - May 13, 2003
After facing their lowest levels in 20 years,
catfish prices may be on the rise. 'After about a
year and a half of struggling with low prices, catfish
producers may see prices rising from 55 to 60 cents
per pound to around 65 cents per pound within the next
few weeks,' said James Steeby, Mississippi State
University Extension aquaculture specialist.
Catfish prices had declined due to an oversupply in
the market. The supply should become short again soon,
causing demand to exceed supply and prices to rise.
In previous months, catfish farmers cut labor and feed
costs and cut back on stocking their ponds just to
maintain production.
'MSU Extension agents helped farmers streamline their
production, improve efficiency and institute
cost-effective management to keep their farms going,'
Steeby reported.
'Catfish is a solid product with a loyal buyer base.
Producers hope that this is a turning point in the
market, and that prices will reflect high demand for
their catfish,' Steeby said.
Hugh Warren, executive vice president of Catfish
Farmers of America, said catfish producers are hoping
for a bright spot in the market.
'There is definitely cautious optimism that prices
have bottomed out and are now headed up,' he said. The
CFA recently brought an anti-dumping lawsuit against
Vietnamese catfish producers who were glutting the
U.S. market with catfish sold at deflated prices. The
Department of Commerce issued a preliminary ruling in
January imposing tariffs as high as 64 percent on the
imports, which raised the foreign prices to more
competitive levels. The International Trade Commission
should make a permanent decision on the outcome of the
case in the next few months.
In the meantime, there is reason to believe that the
decrease in catfish imports has helped America's
catfish producers.
'The implementation of those tariffs has had a
positive impact on the market and could lead to higher
prices for the U.S. producer,' Warren said.
Mississippi produces more than 60 percent of all
catfish consumed in the nation, and the state's
catfish industry amasses more than $2 billion per
year. Steeby reported that U.S. processing reached an
industry record of 630 million pounds of catfish in
2002.
Marketing efforts like those made by the
Mississippi-based Catfish Institute have made
farm-raised catfish the fourth-best-selling fish in
the United States. |
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