Overview
Although initially based on wild harvests, industry practices of maintaining turtle breeding stock in fenced pond enclosures have remained virtually unchanged since the 1950s. In the late 1960s, annual production levels reached as high as 15 million baby turtles, produced on 75 farms. This peak coincided with heavy domestic demand for these animals as pets throughout the United States. Shortly thereafter, however, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control claimed that pet turtles might be responsible for up to 14 percent of salmonella infections in children throughout the country. December 2007 . . . Turtles
Marketing
- CVM and the Regulation of Turtles, Center for Veterinary Medicine, Food and Drug Administration - This webpage explains the public health act that regulates the sale of pet turtles.
- Declared Turtle Trade From the United States, World Chelonian Trust, 2006 - Turtles exported from the United States have four primary destinations. The first is directly to the food markets of China and Southeast Asia (Taiwan and Japan). The second is to Asian turtle farms where the majority are "grown out," much like U. S. cattle feedlots, and then sent to market. The third is for breeding stock in turtle farms, and the fourth is for the huge pet markets around the world.
- Turtle farmers hoping to lift sales ban, Shreveport Times, 2007.
Production
- Census of Aquaculture (2005), USDA, 2006.
- Pet Turtle, Louisiana State University (LSU) Agricultural Center - This webpage provides links to related information and to lists of LSU research and extension contacts.
- Pet Turtle Production, Southern Regional Aquaculture Center, SRAC Publication No. 439, 2000.
Businesses/Case Studies
- Louisiana Cypress Turtle Farm, Michael and Emma Hebert - With 30 years of experience, the couple hatches red-eared slider turtles for the pet industry.
- Turtle Food?, Oklahoma State University, 1998 - John and Anne Niwa of Gore, Oklahoma, raise American box turtles for the pet industry trade. The Niwas are also gearing up to produce a commercial turtle food.
Links checked April 2008.