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Mark DePugh has sold high-end koi fish for decades, but you wouldn’t necessarily know it.

There is nothing marking his farm directly off U.S. 23 south of Chillicothe. There’s no signage and no website, though there is a Facebook page. There are no hours of operation.

“I’m here,” he said as he swayed on a double-facing, Amish built swinging chair gazebo he installed for his wife, Karla. Now retired, DePugh spent his professional career in various roles in safety and security with DuPont. “This is my life.”

It was during a work trip in Japan that DePugh said he “fell in love with Asian culture.” The form, order, discipline, and the beautiful koi fish left a mark on him. Plus, as a hunter and outdoorsman, he’s always felt comfortable with the land and animals.

DePugh has left his mark on his community – as a worship leader at his church, a wrestling coach at the local high school and an enthusiastic entrepreneur – for decades. It has all come together at the 72-acre DePugh’s Fish Farm, where people from around the region, and some across the country, come to find a knowledgeable staff of one who has a “passion for the fish, passion for people and a passion for farming life.”

People are the business

DePugh can weave a tale, layering on the story of how his koi obsession began with one koi pond for fun and turned into a thriving operation.

By appointment only, DePugh caters to both families who just want pretty fish to folks who not only know one koi fish from another, but know the quality of the fish from scale color and different markings. DePugh takes pride in being able to offer both to his customers.
Besides an advertisement in the local newspaper 20-plus years ago, all of his advertising has been word of mouth. The fish farm is summed up on his only social media platform this way:

“We farm 10 ponds and spawn, hatch, and raise gorgeous high quality koi fish – standard fin, butterfly, scaleless and metallics. We have it all.”

DePugh exudes that assessment.

“I wrote a bunch of business plans when I was with DuPont, but never here,” he said. “This is way more than a business for me. It is a passion for me. We have been so blessed.”
The business has evolved over time. One story leads to the next. From one visitor who told him he’d give him $100 for a fish if he caught it from his pond 25 years ago and launched the business, to a former high school student who he called to bring over his trackhoe and dig the first two koi “grow out” ponds, to his 12-year-old grandson Micah, who has already told him he’s ready to take over the fish farm some day.

Farm Bureau connection

Though he’s been farming for years, DePugh only joined Farm Bureau just last year after a chance meeting with members in Pike County.

A good businessman, DePugh had his farm in CAUV (aquaculture is included in the definition of agriculture), but did not plan to renew it this year.

“We were CAUV last year, but we didn’t renew it this year and actually the paperwork is laying on the counter right next to me,” he said via email earlier this year. “I don’t really have time to spare to go through the hassle of completing a segmented form each year. Is my thinking wrong?”

The short answer was “yes.” It turns out that DePugh’s Fish Farm’s CAUV value is about 30% less than its market value, so his next tax bill will see some savings in CAUV.

As for filing out the paperwork year after year, it is a good practice for a landowner to keep a copy for their records, which can help them easily fill out the paperwork each year.

DePugh learned from Farm Bureau that the delineations that need to be noted in part serve as a way to prove CAUV qualification – which must be done every year; it also helps the auditor in their inspection to know what they are looking for. It also can assist the auditor in ensuring any special valuations – for conservation or woodland – that might be applicable to property and allow for a lower valuation.

As for the application itself, there is no fee for renewal, only for when you first enroll. There is a small grace period if you miss the application renewal deadline, but it’s possible you will be taken off the program and will be charged recoupment. (See below.)

Armed with this information, DePugh made a beeline for the auditor’s office and then sent Farm Bureau an email that read: “Just left the auditor’s office. CAUV RENEWED!!”

With his farm safely staying in CAUV, DePugh can continue to “love the fish, the people and the farm life.”

Online extra: CAUV recoupment

A farmland owner may lose CAUV status by failing to renew or not meeting the qualification requirements. If a farmland owner with property in CAUV misses a deadline or otherwise is out of the program, that person has to pay recoupment. Recoupment is equal to three years of the tax savings the farmer had by being on the program. Depending on the county, the auditor can usually estimate what recoupment will be if a farmer is thinking about leaving the program or changing their land use.

Photos by Dave Liggett