LONOKE COUNTY, Arkansas — Agriculture is Arkansas's largest growing industry, but there's a sector that's often overlooked — Aquaculture.
“In Lonoke County, you'll see some of the largest fish farms in the United States,” Keo Fish Farms General Manager Seth Summerside said. "We’re the largest hybrid striped bass hatchery in the world."
The farm spans 2,000 acres with sheds that house different fish. The Keo Fish Farms ponds aren't covered by shade, which means the heat impacts them.
"You can have temperature fluctuations anywhere between 70 degrees and 108 degrees," Summerside said. "[It] puts tremendous stress on the fish, and the hotter the temperature, the less oxygen."
According to Summerside, keeping a close eye on the fish is crucial because of the hot temperatures.
"The 100 different ponds... what's the temperature?" Summerside asked. "What's the oxygen level in the ponds? How are we transporting the fish? We're handling 150 million fish a year."
And the heat doesn't just impact the fish. Employees are feeling the burn too.
“Make sure you provide them with enough water, sunblock and air conditioning," Summerside said. "We shift hours based on the temperature whenever we can."
Even so, Summerside said they try and get their work done before the worst of the heat settles in.
“We start at six [and] we end at three," Summerside said. "We try to structure what we do on the farm with the hardest things first, so it's cooler."
With the hot temperatures not going away soon, Summerside says they'll keep finding ways to adapt.
“Climate, the temperature and the fluctuations with what we see in the weather, it's going to be consistent moving forward,” Summerside said.