Like many agricultural crops, there are economies of scale in commercial catfish production. Larger farms are able to produce fish at a lower price per pound than smaller farms. For example, large farms can buy catfish feed in bulk by the truckload while smaller producers, in order to have fresh feed, must purchase bagged feed which costs 10 percent to 20 percent more. Intensive catfish production on a part-time basis is risky because the farmer cannot watch the ponds on a regular basis, day and night. If an aerator fails, fish may die in a matter of minutes.
Large farms have night-time oxygen crews that monitor ponds regularly.
Small-scale producers generally get lower yields since they stock and feed at lower rates to reduce the risk of water quality problems. Cost of Production Large fish farms typically sell most of their production to fish processing plants. Most farmers own shares in these plants that entitle them to sell certain quantities. Profit margins per pound are low, but the large quantity of fish sold allows a farm to operate profitably. Larger producers also save a portion of their earnings to allow them to survive periods of low catfish prices when fish production is not profitable.