Lost Valley Fish Hatchery features an 18,000-square-foot fish production room, 78 fish production ponds, seven water supply wells and 15 miles of piping capable of delivering 3,5000 gallons of water per minute. State-of-the-art technology allows electronic monitoring of water temperature, pH, and oxygen levels. A special solar collecting pond produces inexpensive warm water for controlling temperatures in rearing ponds and in the hatchery building. The hatchery produces warmwater and coolwater fish, including largemouth bass, walleye, muskellunge, catfish, paddlefish, bluegill and hybrid sunfish.

In Lost Valley Hatchery, the Missouri Department of Conservation has been able to consolidate operations in a single centrally located facility, allowing closure of two older, less efficient hatcheries. With the opening of the hatchery, the department is less dependent on private fish growers, resulting in better disease control and genetic management of fish stocks, as well as greater flexibility in meeting stocking needs.

Visitors to the hatchery, located near Truman Lake and the town of Warsaw, can learn about fish identification, fisheries management, fishing in Missouri, and the Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Program through interactive interpretive exhibits. They also get an up-close look at native Missouri fish in a 13,000-gallon aquarium.