Compare growth of freshwater shrimp (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) fed a fishmeal free diet to those fed a commercial freshwater shrimp diet containing fishmeal.
Determine levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's) in freshwater shrimp cultured in Ohio.

Freshwater shrimp culture continues to attract attention and grow in Ohio and the Midwest as farmers seek new crops to diversify their operations. In response to on-farm research conducted by the OSU Center for Aquaculture Development and funded by Ohio Sea Grant, the number of shrimp farmers in Ohio has expanded from 3 in 2001 to 22 in 2003. We anticipate having as many as 30 farms growing shrimp in Ohio during the summer of 2004. In addition, a new shrimp hatchery has been opened in Ohio in order to address the need for production of a high quality shrimp juvenile to stock the ponds.

As shrimp culture intensifies, one must be cognizant of this increased growth on existing markets for the product. Currently, most shrimp are sold live, on the pond bank. However, as the novelty decreases, shrimp farmers will have to expand their marketing strategies. One avenue that warrants exploration is that of organically or naturally grown aquaculture products. Currently, aquaculture products cannot be certified organic because of the types of feed used in production. These feeds frequently contain fishmeal as a protein source.

Some shrimp farmers have been approached by restaurants wanting to buy shrimp raised on fishmeal-free diets. This culture method appeals to a certain consumer who may oppose the use of fishmeal in aquaculture diets. In Ohio, we currently have the world's first feed mill producing entirely fishmeal free aquaculture diets. This mill, Freedom Feeds, produces a shrimp feed that many producers would like to see evaluated for efficacy. Therefore, we propose to evaluate the growth of shrimp cultured using a fishmeal free shrimp diet compared to shrimp cultured using traditional commercial diets.

Additionally, many consumers have been concerned about recent news articles citing high levels of PCB's in aquaculture products. Additionally, some reports suggest that at some levels, exposure of crustaceans to PCB's could skew sex ratios. Shrimp producers would like to see the levels of PCB's and mercury determined in farm raised products in Ohio in order to assure the consumer of a quality, safe product. Therefore we propose to determine the level of PCB's in freshwater shrimp reared in Ohio.

This type of research is imperative for the continued growth of the freshwater shrimp industry in Ohio.

Freshwater shrimp (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) will be stocked into six 0.25-acre ponds at the Ohio Center for Aquaculture Development (OCAD) located at the OSU South Centers in Piketon, OH. The shrimp juveniles will be stocked June 3, 2004 at a density of 16,000 shrimp/acre. Three randomly selected ponds will be fed a fishmeal free shrimp diet manufactured by Freedom Feeds (Urbana, OH) and three ponds will be fed a diet containing fish meal manufactured by Heartland Specialty Feeds (Russell, KS). Shrimp will be fed two times daily for approximately 100 days. Water temperature and D.O. will be monitored daily and other pertinent water quality parameters will be monitored weekly. If dissolved oxygen is predicted to fall below 3ppm at any time, ponds will be aerated using ½-horse Air-O-Later surface aerators. Shrimp will be harvested in September 2004. At harvest, all shrimp will be weighed to determine total pond production. Shrimp from three random samples from each pond will be weighed to determine average individual weight, counted to determine survival and sexed to determine sex ratios of the population. Feed conversion ratios and specific growth rates will be calculated.

In order to determine levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's) in the freshwater shrimp, random samples of shrimp will be collected at stocking and harvest and sent for analysis at the Ohio State University Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics Facility. Levels of PCB will be compared between shrimp fed the different experimental diets using a t-test. Production parameters will be statistically analyzed using a t-test.

Outreach efforts during the project will include a workshop that will be held during the harvest to give hands-on harvesting experience to those clients interested in learning more about freshwater shrimp culture. In addition, a shrimp-talk list serve will be created in order to enhance communications among shrimp growers in Ohio. The results of this study will be presented at the Ohio Aquaculture Association annual meeting. Results will be prepared for submission to an aquaculture journal.