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FWC Approves Production, Sale Of Florida Largemouth Bass As Food Product
March 12, 2022
At their March meeting, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved rules to allow for the production and sale of Florida largemouth bass as a food product.
Statutory changes made during the 2021 legislative session sanctioned the sale of Florida largemouth bass produced in aquaculture facilities for food. Staff worked with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) to ensure continued genetic conservation of Florida’s iconic freshwater game fish.
Key points from the approved rule language include:
- Allow for the culture and sale of Florida largemouth bass as a food fish.
- Incorporate FWC’s Genetic Authentication Standards for Florida largemouth bass into rule by reference.
- Prohibit the importation into or transportation within the state of any live bass species, except permitted Florida largemouth bass that meet FWC’s largemouth bass Genetic Authentication Standards.
- Require any shipment of live bass in Florida to be accompanied with documentation required by FDACS and FWC.
“We appreciate the ongoing collaboration with FDACS, and we are confident in the established protocols in place to protect Florida’s iconic gamefish,” said Commissioner Gary Lester.
The Florida largemouth bass is the state fish.
Comments
20 Responses to “FWC Approves Production, Sale Of Florida Largemouth Bass As Food Product”
Making it legal will create a new market for poachers who can now hide in plain site openly advertising “fresh largemouth Bass” on side of roads. Yes, people absolutely will be poaching and selling Bass. Do not assume there is not enough money in poaching when there are people who spend their time hustling scrap metal on trash day. Making Largemouth Bass a desired commercial food fish will have the same results in the wild as it did with Red Drum.
What is next, Snook?
First off this does not apply to state water fisheries the people selling the fish will have hatcheries most likely recorded by the FWC and will probably require a license to sell, so it’s probably a good idea to educate yourself completely before jumping to conclusions. I am not one to usually keep bass to eat but I have on occasions and they are tasty. I will not pass judgment on anyone eating bass as long as they are keeping fish according to the regulations set.
This is a terrible idea. This will lead to evasive fish to really take over if people are catching and not releasing the Bass. Who wants to eat a bass out of our waters anyway. Horrible idea all the way around. FWC should worry about stopping the spraying
I only eat bass when I gut hook them,they do taste good but I’m absolutely apposed
I only eat bass if I gut hook them, they do taste good but I’m absolutely apposed to this
I understand farm raised bass can be sold but where are this farms going to get there bass from cause with the way of prices right now i dont see bass sold cheap enough for farms to buy them so that they can raise them so i feel that people are going to take from local lakes or rivers switch in turn hurts people trying to fish for them
I would personally rather eat Florida bass caught
in a Florida lake by myself or my kids than any fish from a store shipped from China.But I am also concerned about the amount of Toxic Poisonous Chemicals sprayed into the lakes every year by FWC workers to combat the vegetation.
@william you must be eating bass from different waters than I because I’ve never had it taste like mud.
hahaha some of these comments have me laughing.
First off, simmer down, the river bass are going nowhere. There is no money in trying to catch enough river bass to make it an industry. These bass will be grown in huge 20+ acre hatcheries. That is why all these documents will be needed to move them around the state. If anything it will bring more jobs for people to work these big hatcheries.
Second, bass is a high dollar fish, if poaching bass was a huge issue it would be going on now. When these hatcheries start, if anything it will lower the price of any black market bass sales and make it not worth it any longer. So in essence it will stop any bass poaching currently going on. If that is even a thing.
Our Florida sports fish will still be just that.
The 2 above comments are silly
1st Bass are good to eat .
The 1st comment seems upset that people are going to eat his “sport fish”….well, the world record bass was eaten after it was caught . Bass have always been food in FL .
If you catch and release into water then you are sport fishing . If you catch and release into the hot peanut oil then you are feeding your family . Chill out, bass will be just fine
Please read the article. The fish will come from fish farms, not 5 fish limits from local rivers. Geez.
@Robert Chitwood
They will more than likely be farming largemouth bass, not harvesting wild fish.
One of the most foolish decisions ever made the people making these decisions are extremely uneducated in fisheries management,
Love how some use their opinion as a means to sway legislation.
Get the facts and the facts of the matter to form your opinion. Then keep that opinion to yourself until you have the experience to use those facts. You can watch a car race and be told everything about the cars and drivers but still lack experience in that field to recommend a rule change.
How does fwc have authority to approve anything? They are not the legislative branch and in my opinion not much of a law enforcement dept being that they lock there doors at a certain time and get ahold of anyone. To much money is allocated for a part time law enforcement.
@ William
Apparently, you have the two species confused. Catfish have no scales, generally flat wide heads with a wide mouth. and are bottom dwellers, preferring murky water, and literally bury themselves mud, which can cause the meat to have a musky or even muddy taste if not prepared correctly.
On the other hand, Bass have scales. their head is generally tall and narrow, but their mouth is very unique in that it uses a 4-bar linkage system to allow it to open wider than the fishes body. It also creates a vacuum that literally sucks their prey into the mouth. Bass prefer slow moving but clear water avoiding, if possible, muddy and murky water and they never bury themselves in mud. Bass meat is mostly light and flakey with a clean fresh taste.
I hope this help you in identifying and not confusing these two species.
I’m well over 80years old and guided people to catch largemouth bass ten pounds and over the last count was well over 38 or40 and the last 18 pictures and measurements where taken and released.
This is more of the fwc,government $ game is all it is. I have absolutely zero use for either one anymore. The people that make these ignorant decisions have no clue about the devastating effects it will have.Poching,undersized killing,ecologically disruption etc.Shame on you ALL for passing this, I’m sure you don’t care about the future as long as yalls pockers are getting stuffed.Absolute disgraceful.
This is the worst decision possible. After years and years of conservation efforts by literally thousands of people to conserve and protect Largemouth Bass as our nations most valuable valuable sport fish, now someone had the brilliant idea to introduce it as a food fish? Why are you trying to develop a public demand to eat our state fish. To think that developing a taste for a fish species won’t ultimately result in more fish being killed and eaten is naive. In addition, when a fish becomes valuable as a food source poaching becomes an issue. Again, I can’t imagine a more foolish decision. How can the public act to stop this ridiculous decision?
YUCK!!! THEY TASTE LIKE MUD!!! UNLIKE CATFISH, BASS TASTE MUDDY REGARDLESS OF THE BOTTOM OR WATER QUALITY!!!