Memphis, Tennessee – Over the last several years, the sport of catfishing has grown significantly. According to a recent study conducted by the US Fish and Wildlife Department in conjunction with the US Census Department, as of 2018 over 8 million anglers targeted catfish. That equates to over 22% of the estimated 36 million recreational anglers in the United States.
George Young, Jr., an avid catfish angler along with other industry leaders including organizations like Bill Dance Outdoors, B’n’M Rods, SeaArk Boats, RIGRAP, Offshore Tackle and The Catmasters, as well as many others, have come together to put in place an association that is being designed to bring a long desired synergy to the catfish segment. After many years of conversations and over the last several months of effort, the group has progressed substantially creating what is sure to become a long awaited association the catfish community is sure to embrace.
The new American Catfishing Association (ACA) will first and foremost provide its membership with a long list of benefits; everything from travel discounts to membership deals on equipment. In fact, the ACA is soon to put in place one of the nation’s largest benefits programs that will enable the ACA to offer its members over 700,000 different retail and service provider discounts through a specialty app. Just a few of many more key aspects of the ACA will be the education of anglers interested in the sport of catfishing with tips and techniques, implementation of conservation efforts throughout the country, establishment of various local, state and national policies, the creation of a detailed calendar of events, the unification of the many tournament circuits with standardized rules and regulations and many other countless resources.
There will be various levels of membership that will include a limited number of charter/lifetime memberships, annual individual and family memberships, sponsorship memberships, along with affiliate and professional guide service memberships.
More information can be found on their current website at:
www.americancatfishingassociation.com
