Consumers Want More Catfish with their Catfish 

Commercial catfishing is big business in this country, but nearly 7 in 8 of those operations are considered small businesses; more than one-third have annual revenues of less than $25,000. The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is trying to help them reel in more profits.

One of the ways they’re accomplishing that goal is turning what was once considered expendable – the fish’s bones, or “frames” – into value-added inventory.

Catfish bones are a safe source of calcium, so if we can find ways to keep these byproducts in the human food supply, they can provide valuable nutrients and increase profitability for the industry.

Surveys found that most consumers (68%) were willing to try seafood byproduct if it was used as an ingredient in some other seafood or fish product. These results supported the use of catfish bone powder in fish fry mixtures. Test confirmed that consumers liked catfish strips cooked with bone powder mix as much or more than plain commercial breading. In fact, 84% of consumers said they would purchase the fried catfish strips coated with bone powder mix and reported higher levels of positive emotions after learning of the added calcium. Learn more