Alpine Shrimp LLC is currently running a Proof of Concept facility in Wellington Co. Wellington is considered a rural area in accordance with USDA standards. The land we have access to is 35 acres, and is approximately 20 miles north of Fort Collins Colorado. Fort Collins is 60 miles north of the Capital City of Denver.
Right now we are running Pacific White Salt water shrimp. Our water source is free of pollution and we do not use antibiotics, chemicals or any other pharmaceuticals of any type. Meaning we have an all natural product. At this time we are planning our sales to be all fresh, never frozen. They will be sold head on.
Our initial grow out stage should produce 12-13 metric tons of pacific white shrimp. The marketing that has been completed shows that we will be able to sell our shrimp for $18-$20 per pound retail, $13-$14 per pound to "white table cloth" restaurants, and $11-$12 per pound straight wholesale. This is all without bulk discount. Our cost per pound is estimated to come in at $4-$5 per pound.
Our largest challenges are
1) Introducing a true fresh product to the public. Currently the only shrimp available in this portion of the country are frozen imported shrimp or frozen shrimp brought up from the Gulf of Mexico region. Once these shrimp are thawed their texture and flavor suffer, not to mention the pollution in the waters as well as pharmacueticals known to be found in imported shrimp effect the taste. So the texture and taste of fresh shrimp could be a factor at first.
2) Our second challenge will be taking the shrimp to the greater Denver area and being able to retail them there. We know there are year round farmer markets, or markets. This will be our best opportunity for retail.
3) Our most successful opportunity for "white table cloth" restaurants will be in the ski resorts of Colorado; Vail, Apsen, Beaver Creek, etc.. That is not to say that Denver, Boulder, Fort Collins do not have wonderful restaurants; however these areas will be willing to pay a premium for a quality product.
We will also have the opportunity to grow into finfish. Our goals are to move into fish in the flounder family, sturgeon, tilapia, Cobia, Pompano... Although we would not farm all of these species, this gives you an idea of the possibilities.
Our current staff consist of an aquaculture specialist with 40 years in the industry, a gentleman with a degree in Aquaculture from the University of Oregon with 9 years in the industry, one micro biologist who holds her PhD has worked with the EPA, NOAA and most currently at Colorado State University; and lastly a current graduate from Colorado State University with a degree in Biology. Of the 5 of us, three of us are Veterans of the U.S. Military. I stress this as we all have the belief that the job is not done until it is done. We do not look at the clock to see when the day is done. We look at the job to see when is the job done.
The distribution of funds for the first two years break down as follows:
Plumbing/Electrical/Planning/Work $80,000
Greenhouses/Erecting (4) $100,000
Greenhouse for processing (1) $25,000
Licenses/fees/permits $10,000
Internal RAS equipment $125,000
Feed/Post Larvae 2 years $15,000
Utilities 2 years $12,000
Insurance/Security 2 Years $9,500
Salaries/payroll taxes 2 years $250,000
Upkeep of equipment $15,000
Lab testing/equipment 2 years $15,000
Office/advertising 2 years $20,000
10% Overage $68,000
$745,000
Feel free to contact me with any questions you may have. Currently 60% of the worlds seafood is being farmed. Recirculating Systems are becoming more common as they can be set up anywhere.
Scott Hays