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Oak Grove: Carpenters Catfish FarmMartha and George Carpenter have been in the catfish business for the past three years. George was a machinist with the Westinghouse Corporation in Pensacola. He is president of the Northwest Florida Catfish Association. Northwest Florida is distinguished by several factors which enable farms to produce more catfish per acre than any other domestic market. Excellent water from deep water wells and the long growing season establish a platform in a nine acre pond to sustain 7000 fish per acre. Harvesting takes place four times a year. Each harvest yields at least 30,000 tons. The most recent harvest totaled 54,000. The operating cost for an 8 - 10 acre pond is about $17,000.00 per year. Because of the excellent growing conditions, area leaders are considering seeking funding for a processing plant which would afford the catfish farming community a higher price per pound for their fish. It would also lower the cost of shipping.
George Carpenter holds a 3 pound catfish which is an average size for the pond. taken by Denise Daughtry
George Carpenter's granddaughter, Grace assists Dave Daughtry as he hooks a large catfish. taken by Denise Daughtry
George comes to the rescue and lands the four and one-half pound catfish. taken by Denise Daughtry
Grace takes a rest with her mother, Kaye Perry, George and Martha's daughter. taken by Denise Daughtry
Extracting the hook is a delicate operation. Dave proceeds carefully, grasping the fish behind the gills while being careful to avoid getting stuck by the spiny backfin. taken by Denise Daughtry
Dave Daughtry is excited to catch a 4 1/2 pound catfish. taken by Denise Daughtry
Donnie Waters is extracting the hook from the mouth of the catfish with the assistance of George Carpenter. taken by Denise Daughtry
Each catfish is weighed. The average catfish costs $1.50 per pound when the fish is caught at the pond. taken by Denise Daughtry
Mayor Bennie Barnes hooks a large catfish. He and Donnie Waters are planning a fish fry for Margorie Waters who is retiring from her job with the City of Century. It takes about an hour for the Mayor and Donnie to catch 20 fish. taken by Denise Daughtry
Mayor Barnes carries his fish to the scales for weigh-in. taken by Denise Daughtry
Mayor Barnes has the prize catch of the day. taken by Denise Daughtry
Mayor Barnes records the weight of his prize catch just before it is cleaned. taken by Denise Daughtry
George Carpenter begins a demonstration of cleaning catfish by cutting off the spiny central fin. taken by Denise Daughtry
George lays out his catfish cleaning tooks, a gripper to strip the skin off the catfish and a fillet knife. taken by Denise Daughtry
Catfish are skinned. The tough outer membrane is separated beginning with an incision at the head. taken by Denise Daughtry
The skin is separated by pulling downward with grippers. taken by Denise Daughtry
The silo in the background holds 15 tons of catfish food. Catfish food is fed in pellet form. It is a high protein diet composed of fish meal, soybeans, corn, and wheat. In the summer, the catfish at the Carpenter pond consume a ton of food each day. taken by Denise Daughtry
The body is separated from the head, leaving the entrails attached to the head. taken by Denise Daughtry
The fillet remaining weighs about 65% of the total weight of the fish. taken by Denise Daughtry
The fillet is cleaned in a pan of fresh water. taken by Denise Daughtry
Mayor Barnes examines the remains of his prize catch. taken by Denise Daughtry
The feeding machine is mounted in the back of a pickup truck. Feed is sprayed about 20 feet over the pond. The small pellets are snapped up by the catfish. During the summer season, the fish can eat one ton of food per day.
The catfish harvest begins by slowly seining the pond, beginning at one end with two tractors dragging the net, one on each side. taken by Denise Daughtry
George drags one end of the seine net. taken by Denise Daughtry
In this panorama of the pond, one man can be seen on right of the photograph. His job is to hold down the mud line so that the fish cannot escape under the seine net. taken by Denise Daughtry
The larger tractor hauls a reel on which the seine net is slowly rewound. taken by Denise Daughtry
George Carpenter watches the seine net gradually close a small circle on the west bank of the pond. taken by Denise Daughtry
![Oak-Grove%3A-Carpenters-Catfish-Farm_18b.jpg](/gravity/scripts/resize.php?imagefn=/home/filmnf/public_html/locations/Oak-Grove:-Carpenters-Catfish-Farm/Oak-Grove%3A-Carpenters-Catfish-Farm_18b.jpg&width=400 "The two harvesters in the lower frame are attaching \")
The two harvesters in the lower frame are attaching "the sock" which is used to grade the fish. taken by Denise Daughtry
The fish are contained in a narrow area, defined by the buoys on the seine net. taken by Denise Daughtry
The trapped catfish swirl in the muddy water of the seine net. taken by Denise Daughtry
The fish are being driven into the sock. Small fish can escape through the netting while catfish 3 pounds and above remain in the sock. The grading process takes about 24 hours. taken by Denise Daughtry
George rescues catfish that are caught in the seine net.. taken by Denise Daughtry
George is measuring the oxygen content of the water. This is an important task done as many as four times during a 24-hour period. The water is aerated at critical times. The sock will remain in place for 24 hours while the small fish escape the net. taken by Denise Daughtry
This specatular sunset can be seen from the Carpenter's kitchen window. taken by Denise Daughtry
After the fish have graded themselves, the harvest begins. It usually takes place at night. The fish travel better at night and arrive at the processing plant early in the morning. There are six live wells on the truck that are injected with oxygen, insuring that the catfish will arrive in excellent condition. taken by Denise Daughtry
The loading basket has a trap door in the bottom. taken by Denise Daughtry
The basket is lowered into the teeming mass of catfish. taken by Denise Daughtry
A boom truck will pick up the basket and load the fish into live wells on the truck. taken by Denise Daughtry
There is about 3,500 pounds per basket or 1,167 fish are retrived with each scoop. taken by Denise Daughtry
There are no chemicals used in the pond. it is a totally controlled environment. A sample fish is sent to the processing plant for assessment. Tasters at the plant decide when the fish are ready for harvest. A select few fish from each load are ground up and anaylzed for chemicals by the USDA. taken by Denise Daughtry
The taste of the fish depends on the quality of feed and water conditions. With the depletion of fish in the sea, catfish farming is becoming a growing industry. taken by Denise Daughtry
Martha and George receive the good news about the total weight of the harvest. This evening's catch was 22,000 pounds. Combined with the previous week, the total catch for the pond was 54,000 pounds or approximately 18,000 three-pound catfish. taken by Denise Daughtry
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![Oak-Grove%3A-Carpenters-Catfish-Farm_18b.jpg](/popup/locations/Oak-Grove:-Carpenters-Catfish-Farm/Oak-Grove%3A-Carpenters-Catfish-Farm_18b.jpg "The two harvesters in the lower frame are attaching \")
