Sikeston man trying to farm crawfish

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Some wetland once thought of as useless could prove to be of value for Sikeston farmer Ben Hunter.

Last month, Hunter was awarded a grant by the Missouri Department of Agriculture's Sustainable Agriculture Demonstration Award Program to raise crawfish in re-established wetlands.

"It was basically just a big hole in the middle of the field," Hunter said about the wetland. "With farming being the way it is now, I decided to make something out of it. It actually came out of a necessity ... and I like to eat crawfish."

After visiting a couple crawfish operations in Dudley, Mo., and Chaffee, Mo., Hunter decided to check with the Stoddard County University Outreach and Extension Office for more information.

Located on one of Hunter's farms about 10 miles south of Sikeston in Stoddard County, the wetland has been restructured to include pipes and drainage, Hunter said. Crawfish were seeded last spring and harvest season is from April through June, he said.

"People are already asking me, 'When are your crawdads going to be ready?'" Hunter said with a laugh.

While there are a few commercialized crawfish operations in the area, no one has established an operation from wetlands, said Dr. Van H. Ayers, natural resource engineer at the Stoddard County University Outreach and Extension Office.

"Ben is producing crawfish on a lot smaller scale than other crawfish farmers," Ayers said. "I think it's really quite interesting that he's taking a piece of land that basically has served as little or no value and making it into something that may be profitable."

Less fuel, fertilizer

Under the sustainable agriculture program, farmers throughout the state try innovative projects that protect and conserve the state's natural resources and reduces dependence on nonrenewable resources.

Any Missouri farmer is eligible to participate in this program, said Joan Benjamin, program coordinator of the sustainable agriculture program.

"Every year there are lots of really innovative ideas, and this year is no exception," Benjamin said.

For example, one grant recipient from Macon will use surplus fruit from his orchard to create ethanol to fuel equipment on his farm.

More information about the sustainable agriculture program can be found on its Web site at agebb.missouri.edu/sustain/ or by contacting Benjamin at (573) 522-8616.