Whole-farm linear programming for freshwater aquaculture in earthen ponds in Mississippi

This study attempts to determine the most profitable combination of alternative aquaculture species that could be grown within a one-year time period for a representative farm operation. A one-year time frame was selected so each “aqua” crop could be compared but more importantly because changing prices for various aquaculture products send farmers signals that can be used to allocate production strategies for each “aqua” crop. Thus, like row crop farming, “aqua” crops of various species can be selected and grown within a calendar year to optimize profits.; A major goal was to evaluate crayfish production under different management production systems. Experimental results from feed-based crayfish production systems conducted at MSU were compared to a traditional forage-based system. In total, seven production scenarios were evaluated. Results indicate that crayfish production in feed-based systems is capital intensive. Annual production costs for harvested crayfish for feed-based systems ranged from {dollar}0.99 to {dollar}1.56/lb. For the planted forage system the annual production cost was estimated at {dollar}1.14/lb. At a crayfish farmgate price of {dollar}1.25/lb, two feed-based production systems produced higher annual net revenues than that for the traditional forage-based system. These three crayfish production systems were economically feasible at this price. One of these production systems was used in the evaluation of various aquaculture enterprises that could be raised within a one-year time period.; A hypothetical farm was developed to formulate a representative aquaculture farming operation for the production of various freshwater aquaculture species. The hypothetical farm was used to develop production budgets for catfish, freshwater shrimp, tilapia, and crayfish. This information was used to develop a linear programming model to evaluate the combination of aquaculture enterprises that could be raised on the representative farm to maximize profit.; The optimal enterprise mix was a combination of the production of catfish and tilapia. This enterprise mix produced {dollar}135,596 in returns above variable costs and {dollar}2,326 in returns above all specified costs for the entire farm. The optimal enterprise mix is a feasible economic activity. Parametric programming generated the optimal quantity of a commodity to be produced within a range of output prices.