Focus! it's the consumer that counts: new perspectives on the role of consumers in aquaculture decision making

• Main Authors: Young, James A., Muir, James F., Smith, Andrew P.
• Format: Report
• Language: English; unknown
• Published: International Institute of Fisheries Economics and Trade
• Subjects: Fisheries > Economic aspects > Congresses; Sustainable fisheries > Congresses; Consumers; Aquaculture; Decision-making; Atlantic salmon
• Online Access: https://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/concern/conference_proceedings_or_journals/8c97kr64z

In developed country markets, the consideration of consumer wants has not been prominent hitherto in aquaculture production decisions. Like capture fisheries aquaculture has been product driven. This supply-side focus reflects an emphasis upon technical solutions to the production and capacity problems of high unit value (HUV) species culture. Whilst this may have appeared to be a rational strategy, longer-term consequences of consumer neglect soon emerged: production booms met with price collapse. Atlantic salmon in Northern Europe and now Mediterranean bass and bream are cases in point. Producers have normally responded to this cycle by industry exit or diversification into other HUV species. Surprisingly, far fewer have taken a marketing perspective and identified what the consumer actually wants in cultured products. Were this information known, producers might be better placed to forestall adverse trends. This paper considers the adoption of a consumer-orientated approach using African (Chinas) catfish, a species which though far less valued than HUV species, has favorable production characteristics. The research was based on in-home product placement tests of the product were combined with face-to-face interviews of consumers. Consumer perceptions of the product were analyzed using Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA), which identifies patterns of association hidden by more conventional techniques. Results suggest that for the UK consumer, Clarias products might fit into a number of market segments which, in contrast to most conventional HUV species, are not niche markets. Such findings have significant implications for producers' subsequent marketing strategies, and also suggest opportunities for a more generally proactive role for fish producers.