FROG FARMING

Evening Star, Issue 22575, 17 February 1937, Page 3

FROG FARMING

BEGUN IN AUSTRALIA A freighter which arrived in Sydney from New Orleans recently brought a consignment of 15 specially-bred giant frogs which will be used for the breeding of frogs for food purposes on farms at Burwood and at Orange (says a writer in the ‘ Sydney Morning Herald ’). Britain’s first frog farm will shortly bo started at Bridge of Earn, a few miles from Perth (Scotland). The originator of this scheme is Miss Alice Murdoch, of Perth. She has purchased seven pairs of bull frogs from Louisiana (U.S.A.), and they are making the journey in a special glass case, lined with damp moss, and kept cool by ice. In a year she estimates that there will be 70,000 bull frogs in her tanks, and it will not take long for these to increase to millions. She believes that there is a developing market for frogs in nursing homes and on hotel menus throughout Britain. It is remarkable that so little is known in Australia of the frog as a popular table delicacy. The industry of producing edible frogs of suitable varieties is a source of revenue in many parts of the world. Two young Victorians recently imported from the United States the first shipment of edible frogs, to be installed on a frog farm near the border of New South Wales. Many people shudder at the very idea of eating frogs, but frog farming is an undertaking of considerable importance in other parts of the Englishspeaking world; it is a general misconception that frogs are a luxury mainly appreciated by the French people, LIKED BY THE ROMANS. The value of frogs as food was many years ago recognised. History records that the Romans highly appreciated frogs as the most favoured dish at their banquets. In modern times the French for many years have alone appreciated the delicacy, but the fame of the table value of the- frog gradually spread to Germany and other parts of Europe. Then the objections of conservative England and later the United States of America were overcome. The Americans soon adopted the frog, and visualised the commercial possibilities of the frog industry, both for home consumption and as a valuable subject to “pack ” for export. The business of taking frogs for market and of fanning them has greatly increased in recent years. It is now carried on in all parts of the United States, and is of economic importance in at least 15 of the States, while in nearly all the remaining States frogs are taken for local or home consumption. The States of California, Missouri, New York, Arkansas, Maryland, Virginia, Ohio, and Indiana are the chief sources of,frog supply. Canada also has been won over to full appreciation of the frog, and Ontario yields a large supply. In 1900 the annual catch in the United States was over a million frogs, having a gross value of 50,000 dollars (£10,000), while in those days the yearly cost of frogs and frogs’ legs to the consumer was not less than 150,000 dollars (£30,000). The output has increased enormously since then. BULLFROGS PREFERRED. The species most favoured are the largo bullfrogs, which, exclusive of legs, are eight or nine inches long. The meat of frogs* legs is white, delicate, extremely wholesome, and palatable. Although frog meat is eaten at all seasons of the year, it is at its best in the autumn and winter. As a general rule, only the hind legs are used. The meat on the other parts of the body is certainly edible, but in very small quantities. The legs are prepared for the table by boiling, frying, or stewing. They make a delicious fricasse when properly prepared. In fact, in flavour and delicacy they resemble the primest chicken or pigeon. There is plenty of meat on the legs of good frogs, and an average pair skinned and dressed will weigh half a pound. There will, of course, be the question of prejudice to overcome when the industry is sufficiently advanced to be productive. However, this has been done in other parts of the world, and English-speaking races are the best customers. To-day probably many people will express disgust at eating frogs, but they are much cleaner feeders than many of the animals which we enjoy as food. The frog lives largely on insects, but the main objection has been always mainly based on its uncanny appearance. Surely this is not a logical reason, as, in spite of their lack of beauty, some of our ugliest fish, say, the John Dory or the crayfish, are the most popular. MADE SMALL FORTUNES. When frogs first become popular in the United States, frog-hunting in the open swamps and marshes was a regular form of profitable employment, and thousands made small fortunes at Lake Erie, the grand reservoirs in Ohio, and in the marshes of the Sacramento in California. The usual method was for two men to hunt together at night in a boat, one rowing and the other standing in the bow with a spear and a large reflector especially made for the purpose. The season was from March to June. The. demand was so large, and even in those early days prices were so good, that the inroad on the frog tribes became so serious that they were threatened with extinction. It was then found necessary to commence frogfarming to maintain the supply, and today this is the manner in which the market is supplied. Not only do the farms supply a huge quantity of frogs’ legs, which sell readily, but they are canned for export all over the world. Frog-farming to-day is undertaken with just as much care as poultry-farm-ing, and requires knowledge, care, and attention. It also requires time, for in most cases frogs do not breed until they are three or four years old, and it is not general knowledge that they enjoy a long span of life. They will live for 15 or even 20 years. A visit to a frog farm is a revelation. One of the best known and largest is in Ontario. The waters, both natural and artificial, are stocked with mature mated frogs. The annual output is very large, and the undertaking prosperous. In many cases, such as has been done in Victoria, special shallow artificial ponds are prepared. These are quite elaborate, and the waters are freely illuminated with artificial light, which attracts swarms of insects at night, providing a natural diet for the frogs.