ASian Carp and the American market
"It is the opinion of the Working Group that harvest enhancement should be a primary tool in the control of Asian carps" (Conover 82), says a very lengthy 2007 report on managing Asian carp (which also lumps black and grass carp under the same term). "This requires the development of markets for the harvested fish," it later goes on, "and, in the short or medium term, may require
incentives for harvesters (Appendix 6.10). Harvest enhancement should be focused on bighead
and silver carps because they are the most abundant of the Asian carps in the system (Barko et
al. 2005), and because the less abundant grass carp already fetches a reasonably high price
(Maher 2002, 2005)" (82).
Skip ahead to 2012, and you can see the following: "Asian carp densities and biomass in the Illinois River are high, but relative to major fisheries and aquaculture production of the world... are well smaller than those in fisheries that have collapsed, including the one in the species’ native Yangtze River. Thus, it is possible that Asian carp in the Illinois River may be controlled with fishing…" (Garvey, 3). Yet the paper's later discussions of stalled-out plans to ship carp to China and of the attempt to convert carp into fish meal and fertilizer shows that little has changed since the 2007 paper was written. Asian carp still have not cracked the U.S. market.
Take a look at an even more recent plan, from 2014, and you'll see this gem of glum optimism: "There is a potential that Asian carp could be used as a human food source" (Conover, 85). Clearly Asian carp have still not hit the American seafood scene. Even though so many sources agree it would be desirable to fish for them, even though they are immensely popular in Asia, and even though tests of their toxin content (Rogowski) have yielded favorable results, nobody in the U.S. buys them.
Or, to look at it slightly differently, nobody in the U.S. sells them. I have never once seen Asian carp at a fish market or grocery store, nor have I even been able to find them for sale online. It is hard to tell what exactly is keeping carp off the American market. Are people unwilling to buy them because they think they're no good to eat? Or are stores unwilling to stock them because they think people think they're no good to eat? Or are commercial fisherman unwilling to pursue them because they think stores think people think they're no good to eat? It's tough to say.
However, a good way to start answering that series of questions, it would seem to me, would be to gather data concerning just how unwilling or willing Americans are to buy carp. That is what I aimed to begin doing in my research.
If anybody knows how to get their hands on some Asian carp and wants to know how to prepare it, they can take a look at a list of Asian carp recipes linked on my external resources page. If anybody reading this site happens to own a grocery store chain, I have also linked a wholesale carp seller to the same page.
This site was created by Joey Benevento in Emory University's Domain of One's Own Program as part of an English 212W class with Professor Marc Bousquet.
Skip ahead to 2012, and you can see the following: "Asian carp densities and biomass in the Illinois River are high, but relative to major fisheries and aquaculture production of the world... are well smaller than those in fisheries that have collapsed, including the one in the species’ native Yangtze River. Thus, it is possible that Asian carp in the Illinois River may be controlled with fishing…" (Garvey, 3). Yet the paper's later discussions of stalled-out plans to ship carp to China and of the attempt to convert carp into fish meal and fertilizer shows that little has changed since the 2007 paper was written. Asian carp still have not cracked the U.S. market.
Take a look at an even more recent plan, from 2014, and you'll see this gem of glum optimism: "There is a potential that Asian carp could be used as a human food source" (Conover, 85). Clearly Asian carp have still not hit the American seafood scene. Even though so many sources agree it would be desirable to fish for them, even though they are immensely popular in Asia, and even though tests of their toxin content (Rogowski) have yielded favorable results, nobody in the U.S. buys them.
Or, to look at it slightly differently, nobody in the U.S. sells them. I have never once seen Asian carp at a fish market or grocery store, nor have I even been able to find them for sale online. It is hard to tell what exactly is keeping carp off the American market. Are people unwilling to buy them because they think they're no good to eat? Or are stores unwilling to stock them because they think people think they're no good to eat? Or are commercial fisherman unwilling to pursue them because they think stores think people think they're no good to eat? It's tough to say.
However, a good way to start answering that series of questions, it would seem to me, would be to gather data concerning just how unwilling or willing Americans are to buy carp. That is what I aimed to begin doing in my research.
If anybody knows how to get their hands on some Asian carp and wants to know how to prepare it, they can take a look at a list of Asian carp recipes linked on my external resources page. If anybody reading this site happens to own a grocery store chain, I have also linked a wholesale carp seller to the same page.
This site was created by Joey Benevento in Emory University's Domain of One's Own Program as part of an English 212W class with Professor Marc Bousquet.