Craig Sagrera of Vermillion Gator Farms stretches out on a pile of wild alligator skins worth more than $150,000. The skins are being readied to ship overseas. Photo: Ed Lallo/Newsroom Ink
Editor’s Note: September is the wild alligator harvest season in Louisiana. Gulf Seafood News will publish a four part in-depth look at the industry. Television shows such as “Swamp People” have raised the awareness of the benefits of alligator meat to an ever-widening audience. For the industry this has been both a blessing and a curse – prices are at an all time high, but meat is often in short supply. This look at a growing industry by Newsroom Ink reporters Ed Lallo and Springfield Lewis was originally published on Louisiana Seafood News.
by Ed Lallo and Springfield Lewis/Newsroom Ink for Louisiana Seafood News
You’ve heard the expression that “quality is job one” when it comes to making cars. That same thinking applies to raising alligators and delivering flawless skins to market.
“Farm-raised gators is all about the quality,” said Craig Sagrera, of Vermilion Gator Farm, a family-run business.
Gucci dual time watch with black alligator leather strap selling on Ebay for approximately $1200. Photo: Ebay
Given the nature of alligators, however, ensuring quality is no easy task.
“I am taking a cannibalistic animal, putting him in a pen with his brothers and wanting him to grow for a year – without a scratch on him,” said Sagrera.
“I don’t want his buddy to scratch him or bite him because I won’t be able to sell that skin for top dollar. My customers want my skins stamped ‘perfect’.”
Louisiana Gator on Your Wrist
Sagrega’s business exports its products to markets worldwide. Ninety percent of all gators harvested on the family farm end up as watch wristbands – stamped with labels from Gucci, Hermes and others.
The other 10 percent are turned into small leather goods, including coin purses, belts and wallets with similar designer labels.
Skins from wild gators are used for a wider variety of purposes. Larger ones can go into garments and briefcases. Smaller ones, around five or six feet, are made into purses. Each product varies, according to the size of the gator.
“Our major customer is in Singapore,” Sagrera said. “We sell approximately 70 percent of our gator skins to the Asian markets.”
Depending on quality, Sagrera receives approximately $20-$25 per foot for wild alligator skins. Farm raised skins bring a price of $150 -$175 per skin.
Pressing the Flesh to Sell Skins
Gators are raised to meet customer specifications, but do not come with carrying straps as in this retouched photo. Photo: Smarter.com
Gators are raised to meet customer specifications. Every month, Sagrera’s operations are in constant contact with customers. This business also demands personal visits to customers’ facilities overseas.
In dealing with Asian and European tanneries, “we do a lot of international travel to shake hands, discuss the stock on our farm, pricing and the prospects for the market in the future,” he said.
“What is China consuming? What is Europe consuming? This is all part of the business of Louisiana alligator. If the global economy is doing well, then I am doing well.”
While Sagrera travels regularly overseas, he’s also on the road around the Bayou State to:
- Vermilion Parish on a farm located 10 miles south of Abbeville.
- Somewhere in the marshes along the Gulf Coast.
- Or, smack dab in the middle of nowhere, where Google has yet to map.
Looking over his carnivorous crop, Sagrera observed: “We have had Gucci, Hermes, Louis Vuitton and Swatch – all here on this south Louisiana gator farm.”
When it comes to gators, it looks like Sagrera of Abbeville is a brand unto itself, too.
The Business Of Louisiana Alligator:
- Part One: From Rice to Gators
- Part Three: Bite Down, Alligator Meat is Healthy
- Part Four: Thick-Skinned “Environmentalists”
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