Aquafarms Inc

What Aquafarms Inc does

Florida Aqua Farms Inc. (DBA Aquafarms Inc.) is a privately held, family-owned manufacturer and direct-to-consumer supplier of specialty aquaculture products founded in 1966 by Frank Hoff, William Hoff, and Terry Snell. The company focuses on intensive closed-cycle aquaculture and the culture of live foods — microalgae, rotifers, Artemia (brine shrimp), and daphnia — supplying both scientific research-quality feeds and aquarium hobbyist products in a single catalog that competitors do not replicate. Its proprietary portfolio includes trademarked items such as Resting-Rotifers™, Micro Algae Grow™, Hatch-Rite I and III™, Roti-Rich™, Plant Fuel, Coralline Stimulator, Mass Pack™, Plankton Collector™, and Culture-Boy 3 & 5™, alongside standard equipment (pumps, filters, water test kits, sterilizers, hatchers), enrichment diets, gel-based foods, and educational manuals.

The business operates primarily through direct-to-consumer channels — phone, fax, email, and an e-commerce storefront at floridaaquafarms.com — with no minimum order requirement, credit card payment at fulfillment, and discounted wholesale pricing for large orders, shops, or distributors. Geographic scope is domestic USA only, with explicit prohibition on open accounts outside the USA. The customer base is a long tail of hatcheries, small wet-labs, pilot-scale aquaculture projects, scientific research and educational institutions, and aquarium hobbyists (marine, freshwater, and Koi).

Current ownership and operations are concentrated within the Hoff family: Frank Hoff (Owner), Nancy Hoff (President), Autumn Hoff (Sales), and Dustin Hoff (Production), with a total headcount of 11 employees. The company generates revenue through one-time product sales (no subscription, licensing, or recurring revenue model identified), with no institutional investment, no funding rounds, no M&A activity, and no public-market presence. The founders' deep industry pedigree — including co-founding Instant Ocean Hatcheries (1974) and Frank Hoff's ongoing consulting role on ORA's board — is a defining but not directly monetizable asset.

Name

Aquafarms Inc

Legal name

Florida Aqua Farms, Inc.

Website

https://florida-aqua-farms.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1966

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Florida Aqua Farms Inc. (Aquafarms Inc.) is a family-owned manufacturer and D2C supplier of specialty aquaculture products — live food cultures, enrichment diets, water treatments, and equipment — serving hatcheries, small wet-labs, research institutions, and aquarium hobbyists across the USA.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Aquaculture Products and Supplies

NAICS

Aquaculture (1125), Finfish Farming and Fish Hatcheries (112511)

SIC

Wholesale-Farm Product Raw Materials (5150)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYHLAMAHAF

Aquaculture Feed & Nutrition

Healthcare & Life Sciences/Veterinary & Animal Health/Animal Nutrition & Therapeutic Diets

SECONDARYAFAEAAAM

Aquaculture Farm Services & Operations Support (net cleaning, diving, grading, harvesting)

Agriculture & Food Production/Animal Production & Aquaculture/Aquaculture (Fish & Shellfish Farming)

Keywords

• Live aquaculture foods
• Aquaculture hatchery supplies
• Closed-cycle aquaculture systems
• Rotifer and Artemia culture
• Aquatic equipment and water treatment

Headquarters

HQ city

Dade City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Product Sales (E-commerce and Direct): Direct sales of aquaculture products, live cultures, equipment, and supplies through phone, fax, email, and website ordering. Credit card payments processed at time of product availability. No minimum order but $1.50 packing fee on orders under $20.
2. Catalog/Mail Order Products: Manufactured products sold via printed catalog and web storefront including live foods, enrichment diets, gel-based foods, algae disks, equipment, and supplies for hatcheries and aquarists.
3. Wholesale/Distribution (Large Orders): Discounts available for very large orders or for shops or distributors. Formal quotes provided upon customer request for larger volume purchases.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Florida Aqua Farms Inc. manufactures and sells specialized aquaculture products, including proprietary live food cultures (microalgae, rotifers, Artemia, daphnia), enrichment diets, gel-based foods, cultured macroalgae, water treatment products, and aquaculture equipment such as hatchers, filters, pumps, and plankton collection systems. The catalog is designed for hatcheries, small wet-labs, pilot-scale and experimental aquaculture projects, as well as aquarium hobbyists and educational/research facilities, with emphasis on closed-cycle intensive live food production.

Product overview

Florida Aqua Farms Inc. is a manufacturer and supplier of aquaculture products and aquatic supplies, offering a diverse portfolio of live food cultures, enrichment diets, water treatment products, equipment, and educational resources. The company specializes in intensive closed culture of live foods including microalgae, rotifers, Artemia, and daphnia. Their product portfolio includes branded products such as Resting-Rotifers™, Micro Algae Grow™, Plant Fuel, Plant Fuel Too, It's Clear, Coralline Stimulator, Mass Pack™, Roti-Rich™, Hatch-Rite I and III, Plankton Collector™, Culture-Boy 3 & 5™, along with equipment (Air and Water Pumps, Filters, Water Test Kits, Water Sterilizers, Hatchers and Vessels), live food products (Brine Shrimp Cysts, Live Cultures, Cultured Macroalgae), supplements (Enrichment Diets, Gel Based Foods, Micro Macro Nutrients, Vitamins and Minerals), and educational resources (Plankton Culture Manual™, Conditioning and Spawning of Fish). The products serve aquaculture hatcheries, small wet-labs, pilot scale projects, experimental work, scientific research labs, educational facilities, aquarium industry, and aquatic farmers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Resting-Rotifers™ Specialized live food product for aquaculture and aquarium applications, providing resting rotifer cysts for hatching and culturing.
• Micro Algae Grow™ Formulated product for cultivating microalgae, used as a primary food source in aquaculture hatcheries and marine fish propagation.
• Hatch-Rite I and III Artemia hatching products for producing brine shrimp nauplii as live feed for larval fish and crustaceans.
• Roti-Rich™ Enrichment diet for rotifers, providing enhanced nutrition for marine fish larvae.
• Brine Shrimp Cysts Artemia cysts for hatching into brine shrimp nauplii, a staple live food in aquaculture hatcheries.
• Live Cultures Active cultures of live foods such as rotifers, daphnia, and other zooplankton for immediate use in aquaculture and aquarium systems.
• Cultured Macroalgae Cultivated macroalgae species for use as natural feed and filtration in marine systems.
• Culture Kits Complete kits for setting up and maintaining live food cultures including algae, rotifers, and other feeds.
• Culture-Boy 3 & 5™ Culture systems or vessels for small to pilot-scale aquaculture operations.
• Plankton Collector™ Equipment for collecting and harvesting plankton from culture systems.
• Plankton Systems Complete systems for cultivating and managing plankton populations in aquaculture operations.
• Hatchers and Vessels Incubation and hatching containers for Artemia and other live food production.
• Air and Water Pumps Pumping equipment for circulating air and water in aquaculture and aquarium systems.
• Filters and Cartridges Filtration systems and replacement cartridges for maintaining water quality in aquaculture and aquarium applications.
• Water Sterilizers UV and other sterilization equipment for controlling pathogens in aquaculture systems.
• Water Test Kits Kits for testing water parameters including pH, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels.
• Water Treatments

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Broad incumbents

• Skretting (Nutreco): Broad incumbent with the world's largest aquaculture feed portfolio, including live feed and nutrition products. Provides scale benchmarks for the aquaculture nutrition market.
• INVE Aquaculture (Benchmark Holdings): Broad incumbent specializing in aquaculture nutrition, health, and live feeds (Artemia, rotifers, microalgae). Larger global player with overlapping product categories in commercial hatchery nutrition.
• Pentair Aquatic Eco-Systems (AES): Broad incumbent offering a comprehensive catalog of aquaculture equipment, feeds, and water treatment products. Operates at significantly larger scale than Florida Aqua Farms but competes in the same hatchery and aquarium supplies market.
• Zeigler Bros (Cargill): Broad incumbent producing aquaculture feeds and nutrition products for hatcheries and commercial operations. Massive scale with overlapping hatchery feed customers.

Direct peers

• Reed Mariculture: Direct peer specializing in live feeds (microalgae, rotifers, copepods) and aquaculture/hatchery consumables. Both companies target hatcheries and small-scale aquaculture operations with proprietary live feed products.
• Aquafauna Bio-Marine: Direct peer producing live feeds, Artemia, and aquaculture supplies for hatcheries and aquariums. Highly comparable product portfolio of live food cultures and enrichment products.
• Brine Shrimp Direct: Direct peer focused on Artemia cysts, brine shrimp, and aquaculture feeds, serving both hatcheries and hobbyists via direct e-commerce. Closely comparable DTC model and customer segments.

Emerging players

• Argent Aquaculture: Specialty aquaculture supplier focused on hatchery equipment and supplies. Comparable niche focus on small-scale and research aquaculture customers.
• Poseidon Aquaculture Supplies: Smaller specialty supplier of aquaculture and aquarium equipment and supplies. Emerging player with overlapping customer base of small-scale aquaculture and hobbyist customers.

Others

• ORA (Oceans Reefs & Aquariums): Currently the largest marine tropical fish farm in the world and a former commercial venture of Florida Aqua Farms' founders. Not a direct competitor but a closely related ecosystem participant, with Frank Hoff serving on its board.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/aquafarms-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Aquafarms Inc