[OKC] On raising freshwater prawns in Oklahoma

[Shauna Struby]

Fyi .

 

From: mailbox at kerrcenter.com [mailto:mailbox at kerrcenter.com] 
Sent: Monday, August 10, 2009 4:23 PM
To: 'Maura McDermott Kerr Center'; Louise Garvin
Cc: 'Melanie Zoeller'
Subject: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - USE UNTIL Sept. 3, 2009

 

PRESS RELEASE    August 10, 2009

Kerr Center, PO Box 588, Poteau, OK 74953 918.647.9123
<mailto:mailbox at kerrcenter.com> mailbox at kerrcenter.com

Press releases are online at  <http://www.kerrcenter.com/>
www.kerrcenter.com 

Kerr Center is a non-profit educational foundation.

Contact:   <mailto:mauramcdermot.kerrcenter at ecewb.com>
mauramcdermot.kerrcenter at ecewb.com 

ATTENTION: AGRICULTURE or BUSINESS EDITOR

Most Oklahomans wouldn't bring hip waders and seining nets to a roundup.
After they meet Jeremy Eaton, that could change.

On September 12, Eaton will host a field day to demonstrate how he's been
raising freshwater shrimp, or prawns, for the past two years in the pond on
his farm near Cashion, northwest of Oklahoma City.

During the two-hour field day, which starts at 9:30, Eaton will harvest his
second crop of prawns in as many years.  In the meantime, he'll give
visitors the lowdown on production methods, potential problems, and
harvesting and marketing.

Eaton received a 2008 Oklahoma Producer Grant from the Kerr Center for
Sustainable Agriculture to demonstrate the feasibility of raising prawns in
farm ponds as an additional income source for Oklahoma farmers.

Registration for the prawn field day is free, but required by September 4 to
reserve a place. Space is limited. To register, email
<http://kerrcenter.com/HTML/mailto;jcastillo@kerrcenter.com>
jcastillo at kerrcenter.com, or call 918.647.9123.  

Eaton says that the water quality, oxygen levels, and prawn growth rates
during the first season met his expectations.  This year, he's been working
to address challenges from predation, as well as improving containment of
the prawns.

Eaton stocks the prawns, obtained from a Texas hatchery, in May or June, and
harvests in September.  The prawns eat readily available commercials catfish
pellets, and the production area takes up three acres of a farm pond.

 

The way Eaton figures, raising prawns in farm ponds makes good sense in
several ways.  It provides an additional, profitable use for an asset that
most farms already possess. 

"Shrimp are a healthy food that customers recognize and value," he says.
"They can be sold live, maximizing freshness and quality while avoiding the
cost and regulatory hurdles of processing."

Moreover, with over $1 billion worth of frozen shrimp currently imported to
the U.S. every year to meet demand, domestic shrimp production offers a
large potential market. 

Since marine shrimp production for global markets often damages fragile
coastal ecosystems, Eaton says, domestic pond-based production of prawns can
also form a more ecologically friendly alternative.

For information on other upcoming events related to sustainable agriculture,
visit the Kerr Center's website at  <http://www.kerrcenter.com/>
www.kerrcenter.com. 

Lena Moore

Administrative Assistant

Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture, Inc.

P.O. Box 588

Poteau, OK  74953

Telephone: 918-647-9123

Fax: 918-647-8712

email: lkmoore at kerrcenter.com

www.kerrcenter.com

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