Demand pattern and willingness to pay for high value fish consumption: Case study from selected coastal cities in Kerala, south India

Abstract

Fishing occupies an important place in the economy of Kerala State, south India as a vital source of food and protein, avenue for employment and most importantly in the export market. Kerala’s population is basically a fish eating population where the level of fish consumption is four times the national average. The annual per capita fish consumption has increased from 15 kg in 1970s to about 23 kg in 2011. The high value fishes like shrimps, squids, seer fishes and pomfrets are massively exported due to economies of scale, thereby leading to limited local availability resulting in high domestic prices. The present study assessed the fish intake pattern across 600 middle income consumer households of urban area in the metropolitan cities of Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Kozhikode in Kerala. The average family size was found to be 4.2. The study concentrated on income cum expenditure pattern, buying trend, hindrances in fish consumption and readiness to pay for high value fishes. Willingness to pay was figured out using logit model. The results indicated that the income and access to the selling points of fish enhanced the demand. The per capita montly fsh consumption was found to be 2.2 kg with low value per capita fish consumption estimated as 1.43 kg on an average, and the average high value per capita fish consumption at 0.77 kg across study areas. The fish food consumption pattern trends across the different study locales clearly portrayed that there exists significant demand for high value fish and fish products. Most local consumers weren’t aware about low export price and more than 50 % expressed their willingness to pay which indicated existence of a high consumer surplus. Results of the study stressed the need for governmental intervention in controlling fish exports thereby safeguarding local fish food security, replacing exports with local marketing; considering the demand for sizeable quantum and ample readiness to pay.