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Group Makes Asian Carp Money-Maker
An Illinois entrepreneur is making the most of the Asian Carp invasion.

The Big River Fish Corp. in Pearl, in Pike County, will deliver its first load of Asian Carp to China on Friday. Co-owner Ross Harano says the total delivery will be roughly 40,000 pounds.

"Most people in [the U.S.] view [Asian Carp] as a fish that's not edible because of the bones, there's a lot of bones," Harano said. "In Asia, in China in particular, it's viewed as a delicacy."

Harano says because many of the Rivers in China are polluted, Chinese restaurant suppliers are looking outside of the country for fish supplies.

Big River Fish has been in business since 1999 and has been harvesting the Asian Bighead Carp for fertilizer and fishmeal, an ingredient for Gefilte fish.

Harano says the new business deal, which is still in the process of coming up to full speed, will expand the company by 10 times its current size. That means more workers, according to Harano, who says the company will hire 181 new employees, 140 of which will be fisherman.

Harano says the company plans on pulling 30 million pounds of Asian Carp out of the Mississippi and Illinois rivers each year. He estimates there is roughly 500 million pounds of Asian Carp in the Mississippi River basin . Harano estimates about $20 million per year in revenue once facilities are expanded and additional employees hired.

(Illinois Radio Network)
04 06 10 by Newsroom
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