1

In 2013, sales of aquaculture products in the United States totaled $1.4 billion, 

up 26 percent since 2005, the last time the aquaculture census was conducted. 

Forty-eight states produce and sell aquaculture products, but Washington, 

Mississippi, and Alabama accounted for 40 percent of sales in the United States 

in 2013. The top ten states accounted for over three fourths of sales. The 2013 

Census of 

Aquaculture

provides a 

comprehensive 

picture of

the aquaculture 

sector at 

national and

state levels.

(Figure 1)

Aquaculture Farms

Aquaculture 

Results from the 2013 Census of Aquaculture

United States Department of Agriculture

National Agricultural Statistics Service

www.agcensus.usda.gov

(800)727-9540

ACH12-21/February 2015

Highlights

Three states . . . 

. . . accounted for 40 percent of 

aquaculture sales in 2013.

Top States in Sales

($ millions)

Washington 233.0

Mississippi 203.6

Alabama 111.2

Louisiana 90.6

California 83.6

Florida 77.9

Texas 69.8

Arkansas 61.0

Hawaii 58.7

Maine 57.3

Figure 1

Aquaculture Sales, by State, 2013

$ millions

U.S. = $1.37 billion

Data not published

No sales

< $2.5

$2.5 - $4.9

$5.0 - $9.9

$10.0 - $49.9

$50.0 - $99.9

$100.0 +

TX

CA

MT

AZ

ID

NV

NM

CO

OR

UT IL

WY

KS

IA NE

SD

MN

ND

FL

OK

WI

MO

WA

AL GA

MI

AR

IN

LA

NY

NC

PA

MS

TN

VA KY

OH

SC

ME

WV

VT

MD

NH

NJ

MA

CT

DE

RI

AK

HI

Source: USDA NASS, 2013 Census of Aquaculture.

The aquaculture census defines an 

aquaculture farm as any place from 

which $1,000 or more of aquaculture 

products were produced and sold, 

or distributed for conservation, 

recreation, enhancement, or 

restoration purposes, during the 

census year. The number of farms 

with aquaculture sales in 2013 was 

3,093, down 28 percent from 4,309 

farms in 2005.

Water sources for aquaculture farms 

include:

• groundwater

• on-farm surface water

• off-farm surface water

• saltwater.
2 USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

alligators; 33 farms raised and sold $62.6 million of 

alligators. Algae consists of microalgae and sea 

vegetables. Sales of algae produced in an aquaculture 

environment totaled $47.7 million in 2013.

Figure 2

Number of Aquaculture Farms, by Type, 2013

Baitsh 166

Miscellaneous 235

Sport sh 282

Ornamental sh 285

Crustaceans 566

Mollusks 756

Food sh 1,296

Source: USDA NASS, 2013 Census of Aquaculture.

Aquaculture Methods

Farms use a variety of methods in aquaculture production. 

One method is aquaponics, in which the waste produced 

by farmed fish or other aquatic animals supplies nutrients 

for plants grown hydroponically. The census identified 71 

aquaponics farms with 839,622 gallons of water in 650 

tanks.

Distributed Aquaculture

In addition to aquaculture produced and sold, there is 

aquaculture produced and distributed for conservation, 

recreation, enhancement, or restoration purposes. In 2013, 

for example, 110 farms distributed 2.5 billion salmon of 

various sizes, with a live weight of 18 million pounds, for 

these purposes.

About the Census of Aquaculture

The 2013 Census of Aquaculture was a follow-on to the 2012 

Census of Agriculture. It collected detailed information related 

to production methods, surface water acres and sources, production, sales, point of first sale, and distributed aquaculture.

To learn more about the 2013 Census of Aquaculture, the 2012 

Census of Agriculture, and how to access census data, go to:

www.agcensus.usda.gov

Sales by Product Type

Food fish is the largest category of aquaculture product, 

accounting for more than half of aquaculture sales. Food 

fish includes fish raised primarily for food, as well as eggs 

from food fish. (Table 1)

In 2013, food fish totaled $732 million, an increase of 9 

percent from 2005. Mississippi led the country in food fish, 

with $202.8 million in 2013 sales. Catfish sales, valued at 

$375.9 million, accounted for 51 percent of all food fish 

sales. The sales value of 12.5 million market-sized tilapia, 

with a total live weight of 18.4 million pounds, was $40.0 

million; their average live weight was 1.5 pounds. 

Mollusks was the second largest aquaculture category, 

with 2013 sales of $329 million, up 62 percent from 2005.

Oysters accounted for 55 percent of mollusk sales. 

Washington, with $149.3 million in mollusk sales, was the 

leading state. Crustacean sales totaled $85 million, up 59 

percent from 2005, with saltwater shrimp accounting for 

just over half of 2013 crustacean sales. Louisiana, with 42 

percent of crustacean sales, was the largest seller. 

According to point-of-first-sale data (the first point at which 

money is exchanged), 64 percent of food fish sales went to 

processors, and 13 percent went directly to retail outlets. 

For mollusks, the largest outlets were live haulers/brokers 

(33 percent) and wholesale sales to other producers (17 

percent).

Table 1

Aquaculture Sales by Type of Product, 2005 and 2013

2005 2013 %

$ millions Change

Food fish 672.4 732.1 + 9

Mollusks 203.2 328.6 + 62

Crustaceans 53.4 84.9 + 59

Ornamental fish 51.3 41.5 -19

Baitfish 38.0 29.4 -23

Sport fish 18.1 23.8 +32

Miscellaneous 56.0 131.4 +135

Total 1,092.4 1,371.7 + 26

Source: USDA NASS, 2013 Census of Aquaculture.

Miscellaneous Aquaculture 

Of the total number of farms identified in the 2013 agriculture census, 235 engaged in miscellaneous aquaculture, 

a category that includes algae, alligators, caviar, eels, 

frogs, sea urchins, snails, tadpoles, turtles, and live rock 

(Figure 2). The largest item in this category was