Is aquaculture really an option?

Esther Regnier () and Katheline Schubert
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Esther Regnier: CES - Centre d'économie de la Sorbonne - UP1 - Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, PSE - Paris School of Economics - UP1 - Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne - ENS-PSL - École normale supérieure - Paris - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - ENPC - École nationale des ponts et chaussées - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement

Université Paris1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (Post-Print and Working Papers) from HAL

Abstract: This article analyzes the impact of the introduction of aquaculture on wild fish stocks and consumer utility, taking into account three key components: (1) the dependence of aquaculture on reduction fisheries for the feeding of the farmed species; (2) biological interactions between the wild edible species –the predator– and the wild feed species –the prey–; (3) consumer preferences for wild and farmed fish. Fisheries are in open access while the aquaculture sector is competitive. We show that when biological interactions are moderate, the introduction of aquaculture is beneficial in the long run; it improves consumer utility and alleviates the pressure on the edible fish stock. Results are deeply modified when biological interactions are strong: the stock of edible wild fish is reduced and the introduction of aquaculture may even cause a decrease in consumer utility. Finally, we explore the consequences of an improvement in aquaculture efficiency and of a sensitivity of consumer preferences to the farmed fish diet, in the case where biological interaction are absent.

Keywords: Fisheries; aquaculture; consumer preferences; food security; biological interactions; Pêcheries; préférences des consommateurs; sécurité alimentaire; interactions biologiques (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-agr, nep-cwa and nep-env
Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://shs.hal.science/halshs-00786112v2
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Published in 2013

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Working Paper: Is aquaculture really an option? (2013)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:cesptp:halshs-00786112

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