Domestically, AU’s fisheries and aquacultures program addresses a wide range of issues – from putting food on our plates and creating jobs in our rural communities to supporting Alabama’s billion dollar sport and recreational fishing industry and protecting our water supplies. Its impact at home is undeniable.
Since the 1960s, beginning under the leadership of Homer Swingle, Auburn University has been a leader in the development of America’s $3-4 billion farm-raised catfish industry, which has been one of the fastest-growing food-producing industries in the country. Researchers developed a “super catfish” – the AU Hybrid Catfish – that’s faster growing, hardier, easier to catch, and yields more edible meat than the traditionally grown channel catfish and can boost farmers’ profits by 20 percent. AU scientists also are mapping the catfish genome to identify genetic options for improving production and strengthening supplies of catfish stocks, and AU scientists, along with USDA scientists, developed vaccines for two major catfish diseases that are now saving the U.S. catfish industry some $50 million in losses annually.
The Alabama Legislature is funding a project to develop a new aquaculture industry in poverty-stricken west Alabama: seafood! Some of the region’s groundwater that is naturally high in salt content can be used to grow marine species in ponds. Already area farmers, thanks to AU’s efforts, are harvesting some 400,000 pounds of shrimp worth some $900,000 annually. Research and outreach teams are now exploring the production of other marine species, such as flounder, red fish, pompano, rockfish, and bull minnows, in Black Belt ponds, which will benefit the region’s struggling economy.
In the Gulf of Mexico, Auburn University is helping to protect and boost the Gulf Coast’s seafood industry and marine resources. Work under way at the AU Shellfish Laboratory on Dauphin Island and the AU Marine and Extension Center in Mobile is increasing seafood supplies from the Gulf, protecting valuable salt-water sportfish, and addressing environmental problems that affect a wide range of marine species – from oysters and crabs to shrimp and red snapper.
AU’s fisheries and allied aquacultures department received nearly $1 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Commerce to establish a Center for Aquatic Biosecurity, a first-of-its-kind center that’s working to protect one of life’s essential elements – water. The center’s work ensures that Alabama (and ultimately communities worldwide), can protect its water supplies and aquatic species from threats such as pollution, drought, and even terrorism.
Domestically, AU’s fisheries and aquacultures program addresses a wide range of issues – from putting food on our plates and creating jobs in our rural communities to supporting Alabama’s billion dollar sport and recreational fishing industry and protecting our water supplies. Its impact at home is undeniable.
Since the 1960s, 
In the Gulf of Mexico, Auburn University is helping to protect and boost the Gulf Coast’s seafood industry and marine resources. Work under way at the AU Shellfish Laboratory on Dauphin Island and the AU Marine and Extension Center in Mobile is increasing seafood supplies from the Gulf, protecting valuable salt-water sportfish, and addressing environmental problems that affect a wide range of marine species – from oysters and crabs to shrimp and red snapper. 
AU’s fisheries and allied aquacultures department received nearly $1 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Commerce to establish a Center for Aquatic Biosecurity, a first-of-its-kind center that’s working to protect one of life’s essential elements – water. The center’s work ensures that Alabama (and ultimately communities worldwide), can protect its water supplies and aquatic species from threats such as pollution, drought, and even terrorism.