What is the demand for farmed fish on the European market?

• Main Authors: Girard, Sophie, Mariojouls, Catherine
• Other Authors: Aménagement des Usages des Ressources et des Espaces marins et littoraux - Centre de droit et d'économie de la mer (AMURE), Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER)-Université de Brest (UBO)-Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer (IUEM), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université de Brest (UBO)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Sciences pour l'Action et le Développement : Activités, Produits, Territoires (SADAPT), Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-AgroParisTech, Nha Trang University
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2008
• Subjects: EU fish trade; market segmentation; fish farming diversification; consumer expectations; [SDE.ES]Environmental Sciences/Environmental and Society; [SHS.ECO]Humanities and Social Sciences/Economics and Finance; Red drum; Sciaenops ocellatus
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-00361156

International audience This paper analyses what are the potential outlets on European markets for new farmed fish. In the first part, the main striking features about the structure and evolution of the European fish trade over the last decade are presented. The analysis of fish imports and exports provides comprehensive data to characterize the EU fish demand per commodity categories, per species groups, per country, and to estimate price trends for both wild and farmed fish imports. Then, the second part is dedicated to an in-depth analysis of the fresh fish trade, as main outlet for farmed fish. The evolution of the balance trade for the main species groups showing a deficit (salmon, gadoids, other demersal fish, completed by an analysis of the price segmentation of fish imports, highlight the substitution phenomena between farmed and wild fish which occurred over the last decade, while providing an assessment of the fish demand for the different market segments. These results are utilized to analyse the potential outlets on European markets for new farmed species issued from an aquaculture diversification, taking into account the increasing competition from well-established and concentrated fish farming industries (salmon, seabass and seabream), as well as the more recent introduction of low-priced freshwater tropical fish (ex. pangasius). A particular attention is paid to the red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus), a tropical marine fish farmed in the French overseas territories. Future prospects for farmed fish diversification are also discussed as regards the consumer expectations towards image and quality attributes (including environmental).