THE MENHADEN FISHERY 153 



Table 11.1 shows the landings of menhaden on the Atlantic and Gulf 

 coasts between 1950 and 1961. The total catch increased annually from 

 1950 to 1956, during which time it nearly doubled. Following a decline 

 in 1957 and 1958, the catch increased in 1959, decreased slightly in 1960, 

 and reached an all-time record of 1,154,000 tons in 1961. Annual landings 

 during this period averaged 861,868 tons. 



Over 99 per cent of the menhaden catch is utilized in the manufacture 

 of fish scrap or meal, oil, and condensed solubles. The remainder is sold 

 for bait. 



Processing 



Menhaden are processed by the wet reduction method in which cooking, 

 pressing, centrifuging of press liquor, and drying of the press cake are 

 the principal operations^''. Although the reduction procedure is essen- 

 tially the same throughout the industry, the details of plant layout, type 

 of equipment, number of processing units, and methods of handling the 

 materials at different stages of processing vary from plant to plant. The 

 processing capacity of most plants is based on the maximum anticipated 

 quantities of fish in a given locality, rather than on average landings. 

 Many of the companies maintain plants in different localities and thus 

 are able to take advantage of seasonal increases in the availability and 

 abundance of the fish. In recent years, processing operations have become 

 highly mechanized and efficient through the use of continuous-feed equip- 

 ment, conveyor and pump systems, and other labor-saving devices. 



Unloading, Measuring, and Storage of the Catch. Most reduction 

 plants have facilities for unloading two or more carrier vessels simul- 

 taneously. The unloading capacity varies between 150 and 200 tons of 

 fish per hour. The fish are pumped from the carrier vessel by first par- 

 tially flooding the hold with sea water. The fish and sea water are drawn 

 through openings in the bottom of the hold by centrifugal or reciprocating 

 pumps and conveyed through a series of pipes and connecting hoses to 

 a dewatering screen. In some plants, the fish are discharged onto a short 

 conveyor belt and automatically weighed as they pass over a mechanical 

 integrator. From the weighing belt, the fish are dumped onto a second 

 conveyor belt which carries them directly to the cookers, with the sur- 

 plus diverted to a temporary storage bin called a ''raw box." In most 

 plants, the fish pass from the dewatering screen into a rotating hopper 

 where they are measured volumetrically and then conveyed to the 

 cookers or raw box. Each segment of the hopper holds 22,000 cubic 

 inches, a unit measure of 1000 ''standard fish." The actual number of 

 fish per unit of measure, of course, varies with the size of the fish, but 

 each measure of 22,000 cubic inches is estimated to weigh 667 pounds. 



