“There was a window last fall when some farmers were able to book feed at $380 per ton,” said Jimmy Avery, Mississippi State University Extension aquaculture specialist and director of the Southern Regional Aquaculture Center. “Feed costs stayed around $400 per ton for the early part of the growing season but skyrocketed to almost $570 per ton in the last few weeks.
“Couple that increase with fish prices falling from $1.35 per pound to 75 cents per pound, and there is no doubt that the majority of farmers will lose money until something turns around,” he said.
Given current feed prices and the rate catfish convert feed to body weight, about 70 cents per pound of fish goes to feed costs. If fish sell for 75 cents per pound, that leaves only five cents per pound to cover all other farm expenses. That amount is only a fraction of what growers need just to break even.
Avery, who is also a researcher with the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, said this blow comes on the heels of decreased demand for Mississippi farm-raised catfish.
“The short supply of catfish last summer prevented many processors from supplying long-time customers with the product they needed,” he said. “To make sure the supply to these customers would not be interrupted this year, processors loaded freezers in anticipation of spring demand. In the meantime, many of those customers had found fish substitutes, other fish or severely reduced the amount of fish on their menus.”
He said the resulting high inventory led to a dramatic price decline for the producers.
John Michael Riley, MSU Extension agricultural economist, said the number of catfish produced began dropping in 2009, which led to price increases starting in 2010. The decline in production on the farm continued through the first half of 2012. However, production has begun to level.
“For a while, higher prices helped alleviate the increases in feed costs, but the recent run up in those costs, coupled with a drop in output, could push more producers out of business,” he said.
Some think the high cost of feed is related to ethanol production, which relies heavily on corn. A federal mandate requires all gasoline for consumer vehicles to be blended with nine per cent ethanol. This demand for ethanol reduces the corn available for consumption. Consumers, politicians and even the United Nations have petitioned the United States government to lift the federal mandate to relieve pressure on the corn market for the sake of the world’s food and feed needs.
Lifting the mandate would not automatically reduce the stress on catfish growers, Mr Riley said.
“Corn accounts for roughly 20 per cent of the catfish feed, so it would have less of an impact than on cattle or poultry, but any relief would help,” he said.
To help the nation’s meat producers, the US Department of Agriculture recently announced a $170 million meat buy-up. That includes up to $10 million in catfish. While this effort may help decrease the inventory processors are holding, it is a small portion of the nation’s catfish production. The value of catfish products sold in the United States was $546.82 million over the last 12 months.
At its peak in 2001, Mississippi’s catfish industry had 113,500 acres in ponds. In 2012, only 51,200 acres of ponds are in catfish production, down 4,300 acres from 2011.
Roughly 82 per cent of these ponds are in the Delta, and 18 percent are in east Mississippi. The state produced 215 million pounds of catfish in 2011, representing 51 percent of the US total and a production value of $222 million.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Although Germany’s tuna imports have declined, Vietnam’s tuna exports to the market continue to show positive signs. Notably, export value recovered strongly in Q3/2026, and German import data also show Vietnamese products strengthening their position amid competition among suppliers.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Seafood exports are holding double-digit growth, but the opportunities are not spread evenly across product groups and markets. As businesses draw up their plans for 2027, Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026 (VSS2026) offers a chance to look ahead together: what to sell, where to sell it, and how to prepare for growth in the coming years.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) With less than two weeks to go, the Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026 (VSS 2026) will officially take place in Can Tho. Under the theme “Seafood Market Outlook 2027–2029 – Opportunities and Potential for Double-Digit Export Growth,” the Summit is organized by VASEP at a time when seafood businesses are facing rapid market shifts, changing buyer demand, trade policy changes and growing competitive pressure all at once.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) On October 28, 2026, the China Fisheries & Seafood Expo opened in Qingdao, China. The expo takes place over three days from October 28 to 30, 2026. This is a prestigious specialized seafood exhibition organized annually by Sea Fare Exposition Inc.
(vasep.com.vn) In the first nine months of 2026, Vietnam’s tilapia exports to the CPTPP bloc reached $7 million, marking a 51% year-on-year increase. The bloc rstands as the fourth-largest market for Vietnamese tilapia, trailing Brazil, the US, and Saudi Arabia.
(vasep.com.vn) VASEP has officially announced the program for Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026 (VSS 2026), featuring five in-depth sessions covering industry outlooks, trade barriers, buyer demand, the domestic market, and solutions to improve productivity and reduce costs across the seafood value chain.
(vasep.com.vn) Vietnam’s shrimp exports reached US$3.7 billion in the first nine months of 2026, up 11% year on year. Although growth has been supported by China and several markets within the CPTPP, momentum is slowing as exports to the United States and the European Union decline. Tariff pressures, international competition, and raw material challenges are creating significant hurdles for exporters in the final months of the year.
(vasep.com.vn) Markets are changing faster, buyer requirements are becoming more demanding, and trade barriers are growing increasingly complex. In this environment, seafood businesses need more than an understanding of current market conditions. They need a longer-term perspective to answer a critical question: Where will growth opportunities come from in 2027–2029, and what should businesses do now to prepare? This is one of the key reasons why VASEP is organizing Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026.
(vasep.com.vn) In the first eight months of 2026, Vietnam’s pangasius exports to the Middle East reached US$113 million, up 7% year on year from the same period in 2025. Growth has become more pronounced in recent months. In August alone, exports to the region totaled US$20 million, an increase of 24%. This indicates that demand for Vietnamese pangasius in the Middle East is gradually recovering after a slowdown in March, although the pace of recovery varies across markets.
(vasep.com.vn) China’s shrimp imports continued to grow strongly in 2026, while Vietnam’s shrimp exports to the market also recorded notable growth. However, behind these positive figures lie two distinct trends: Chinese consumption is growing more slowly than imports, and lobster accounts for a substantial share of Vietnam’s shrimp exports to China, making its product mix significantly different from those of Ecuador and India. Exporters therefore need to assess each segment carefully to understand the opportunities and risks.
VASEP - HIỆP HỘI CHẾ BIẾN VÀ XUẤT KHẨU THỦY SẢN VIỆT NAM
Chịu trách nhiệm: Ông Nguyễn Hoài Nam - Phó Tổng thư ký Hiệp hội
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Trưởng Ban Biên tập: Bà Phùng Thị Kim Thu
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