Who we are:

MSH is the only commercial hatchery operation, privately owned, in North America that produces cultured Rainbow smelt. Our facilities produces an average 4 to 5 million smelt fry a year. Our fry are delivered to research firms, restoration projects, private pond owners, bait fish growers, and others. Building on the original work done in 1979-1981 by Akielaszek, Moring, Chapman, Dearborn: we have pioneered hatchery production methods and growout/harvest procedures that make Rainbow smelt culture possible. With additional assistance/oversight and collaboration with Dr. David Burlinsky, UNH, we have developed OTC marking protocols of smelt larvae, larvae culture, and advanced adult spawning methods.
 

How we started:

HBF was established in 1988 as a distributor of aquaculture products and a bait fish farm. Over the years, we have developed growout and hatchery methods for a number of native Maine fish. They include: Golden shiner (Notemigonus crysoleucas), Common shiner (Notropis cornutus), Fallfish (Semotilus corporalis), W. sucker (Catostomus commersoni), Emerald shiner (Notropis atherinoides), Yellow perch (Perca flavescens), Fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas R.), Bass (Micropterus d. & s.), Rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax), and others. In 1995, we separated our hatchery/growout/research operations from HBF and set up the Maine Smelt Hatchery division (MSH).
 
 

Adult smelt in a recirculation tank

Other fish in our system include cultured White suckers, Golden shiner, Common shiner, Fathead minnow, Emerald shiner, LM bass, SM bass, and Fallfish.
 

Red Fin Shiners

We also provide consulting services for pond construction, water quality testing and aquatic weed control, fish eradication from private ponds, fish culture methods, and pond maintenance. We also offer many species of Maine fish for stocking of farm ponds, garden container ponds, large aquaria, and culture operations.
 

Smelt growout ponds

Bait fish feeding in growout pond

Additional info:

Harmon Brook Farm is the distributor of our live baitfish products and aquaculture equipment. Our baitfish products are some of the best in this state. We have an in-house ANS-HACCP program, which guarantees a healthy, high quality fish when you buy it. Our ANS-HACCP program is on file at MDIFW (2003), and this program is the first of its kind in Maine. HBF also distributes aquaculture equipment for the bait dealer, farm pond owner, garden ponds, aquaria, and culturist.