The Beginning of Organic Fish Farming in Italy

Edi Defrancesco
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Edi Defrancesco: TeSAF Department, University of Padova, Italy

No 2003.65, Working Papers from Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei

Abstract: Italian demand for organic products is rapidly increasing, yet there is currently no supply of certified organic marine-fish. Moreover, over recent years marine fish farm profitability has been reduced because of competition from imported products. A pilot project was carried out in order to: a) define standards for organic marine fish farming; b) evaluate production costs in four farms, experimenting semi-extensive organic fish farming under proposed standards (seabream, Sparus aurata and seabass, Dicentrarchus labrax); c) estimate the potential demand for certified organic marine fish and consumer willingness to pay in order to figure out the profitability of a product differentiation strategy. This paper shows the economic results for production costs at the farm level and potential demand. The latter has been estimated using survey-data of 6,877 consumers by means of a questionnaire-interview carried out during an experimental organic marine fish promotion sale. Results show that organic marine fish farming could be a good market opportunity for some Italian fish farmers by improving consumer information on organic products, adopting a supply concentration strategy at the farm level and carefully managing semi-extensive-farming set up by proposed regulations.

Keywords: Organic fish farming; Product differentiation; Organic fish demand (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D12 D24 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2003-07
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