INDOOR MARINE SHRIMP PRODUCTION AT KENTUCKY STATE UNIVERSITY

Andrew J. Ray*, Adam Cecil, and William P. Auberry
Aquaculture Research Center
Kentucky State University
Frankfort KY 40601

Shrimp is the most popular seafood item in the US, but fresh shrimp are difficult to acquire in most parts of the country.  By growing shrimp indoors producers can operate year-round and locate systems near fresh shrimp markets.  The purpose of this project was to explore production and marketing characteristics of indoor shrimp production.

Marine shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) post larvae were obtained from a hatchery in Florida, USA and raised in a nursery tank to 0.55g mean weight, then transferred to a 20 m3 biofloc-based growout tank containing water and artificial sea salt at a salinity of 20 ppt.  Shrimp were grown for 98 days, weighed 24.3 g at harvest, and there were 91.8 kg harvested.  The feed conversion ratio was 1.3:1 and the growth rate was 1.7 g/week.  We estimate the recurring costs of production during this project to be $12.10/kg.

Shrimp were sold fresh on ice at a farmers' market in Frankfort, KY at $26.40/kg; 37.2 kg were sold in only 1.5 hours.  Also shrimp samples were cooked and offered to patrons at the market.  Shrimp were dispersed to chefs and consumers in Louisville, KY and Lexington, KY.  People who tried the shrimp were given a questionnaire; 5 chefs and 27 consumers completed questionnaires and some of the results are presented in the table below.  

A high quality product that was well-received by end users was produced and sold at a price that may facilitate profitable business opportunities.  Based on these results, indoor shrimp farming may be feasible in Kentucky.