1,720,970 research outputs found
Sustaining export-oriented value chains of farmed seafood in China
Get PDFThis thesis is intended to improve the understanding of China’s evolving export-oriented farmed seafood systems, and in particularly, shrimp and tilapia farming value chains in Southern China. An integrated, systems thinking and interdisciplinary approach in which both top–down and bottom–up approaches were combined. The research moved from system reviews, to field surveys and workshops, and then to improving sustainability by Action Research (AR), in order to form a holistic understanding of sustainability at both national and local scales.
In the new millennium, the aquaculture sector has matured, and many factors now slow the growth rate of Chinese aquaculture production, such as increasing culture of high-value species and an emerging trend of extensification. There are been some strategy shifts in the aquaculture industry such as changing from a high production to high profit orientation and from causing environmental damage to ecological remediation. A key conclusion is that high growth rates, regularly used in policy dialogues, are misleading indicators and do not reflect, realistic or sustainable, growth profiles. Although overall Chinese aquaculture production is likely to further increase to meet an increasing and changing market demand, growth rates will decrease further. China already is and will continue to be a fisheries products net importer, however, if fishmeal excluded China will remain as a seafood net exporter.
The status and development of four internationally-traded farmed seafood, tilapia, penaeid shrimp, macrobrachium prawns and striped catfish in China were reviewed. China is the largest producer of tilapia, penaeid shrimp and macrobrachium prawns, and striped catfish is not produced in significant quantities due to climate limitations. Meanwhile, China is the largest exporter of tilapia, the second largest exporter in the volume and third in value of shrimp in the world, while macrobrachium prawns mainly support domestic markets. Tilapia and penaeid shrimp were selected for further research.
An analysis of tilapia and shrimp farm scale indicators and their relationship to farming system and market orientation, farm intensification and performance was made. Farm area, both land and water area, labour, including paid and unpaid were effective indicators to distinguish farm scale. Small-scale farms had higher land productivity in production terms but no difference in value output term, and they had much lower labour productivity than medium and large-scale farms. Farming systems were also correlated with land and labour productivities. Market orientation was closely linked to farm scale as most farms with an export orientation required registration with CIQ (China Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine) and were mainly large-scale.
An assessment of local stakeholder sustainability perspectives along value chains revealed that more than 80% shrimp and tilapia farmers didn’t want their children to continue basing their living on aquaculture; because they considered it hard work, high risk and poorly remunerated. Farming was comparative stable with few changes in the five years prior to the survey. Major sustainability factors identified by stakeholders included input costs, profit, water availability & quality and the weather, most of which were outside their control. The measurement of these sustainability factors was firstly proposed by stakeholders and then developed to a set of sustainability indicators (SIs).
Life cycle assessment (LCA) was used as evaluate the environmental performance of tilapia, pig and integrated tilapia-pig farming systems in China. Pig farming had higher environment impacts based on most impact categories than tilapia, and integrated farming systems. Sensitivity analysis showed that improvements of 5% and 10% higher feed efficiency, reduction of fishmeal in feed to 1% level and use of EU electricity could significant reduce overall environmental impacts.
An action research (AR) approach was used to assess the practice of farm record keeping with farmers which were found to be generally low and a major constraint to improving product traceability increasingly demanded by consumers. Large scale and CIQ farms were more likely to keep records and for them to be detailed and analysed to inform improved management. Farmers’ motivation, ability and capability and background had significant correlation with record keeping practice. Two major dilemmas were identified by the analysis. Easy-to-use farm record-keeping system more suitable for less formally educated farmers was a clear requirement but useful storage and analysis of farm data capacity requires sophisticated management tools such as a computer system. Another dilemma is the need for coercion by regulatory authorities or encouragement through provision of education and training in increasing on-farm record-keeping to a level required for international trade and, increasingly, domestic markets. “Precision aquaculture”, value chain integrated solution, and further social-economic reforms were discussed.
Finally, sustainable intensification, diversification, and extensification were proposed as strategies for China to meet the challenges of globalization and the growing demands of export and domestic value chains. In order to enhance sustainability of the sector and provide opportunities for small-scale farmers, the current status and changes of the Chinese social, economic context, food safety and environments issues were discussed. Farmers’ organizations, future consolidation, and land reforms were identified as key to the required changes of farmed seafood value chains
Sustainable Development of Export-Orientated Farmed Seafood in Thailand
Get PDFSustainable development of export-orientated farmed seafood in Thailand is a major issue which can impact local stakeholders as well as global food security. The major species taken into consideration in this research were initially the Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei), Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), giant freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii), and striped catfish (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus). After which more focus was placed on Pacific white shrimp, which is Thailand’s major cultured seafood being traded for export, and tilapia, which has potential for export but also enjoying a good domestic market demand.
Actors or stakeholders directly and indirectly involved in aquaculture value chains may have their own perceptions about sustainability affecting their operations, as various factors within and outside their own systems could affect these perceptions. This could lead to different efforts in responding to these factors to make their operations sustainable.
Three major areas were covered in this study, namely a) describing the strengths and weaknesses of shrimp and tilapia production in Thailand in relation to their export potential, b) evaluating the status of compliance to global aquaculture standards of shrimp and tilapia farming (covering technical and labour aspects), and c) determining perceptions of sustainability across the shrimp and tilapia value chains in Thailand, with a focus on the production sector.
A mixed-methods approach was employed to obtain information in the study sites in Thailand. Basic field interviews were conducted among 206 shrimp producers in 6 provinces in the east and south, and 199 tilapia producers in 4 provinces in the west and east, in terms of farm operations and perceptions of factors which will affect the sustainability of their operations, including generational aspects on future shrimp and tilapia farming.
Key informant interviews were also conducted among other value chain actors (>30) such as hatchery/nursery operators, input/service providers, processors/exporters and technical/ institutional members to determine whether there are differences in their sustainability perceptions.
In addition, face to face interviews with 18 shrimp farm male and female workers were conducted (Thai and migrant workers), as well as with 14 key informants involved in shrimp farm labour issues in Thailand, specifically for well-being and working conditions.
Stakeholders cited environmental (technical), economic, social and institutional (equity) aspects of their operations as factors which will affect the sustainability of their operations. Disease, product price and water quality were the three most important sustainability factors among shrimp farmers, whereas water quality, disease and extreme weather conditions were for tilapia farmers. Product price was the most cited by input service providers, hatchery operators, shrimp and tilapia producers, and processors.
Both Thai and migrant shrimp farm workers perceived a better or much better-off quality of life working in shrimp farms in Thailand than in their previous occupations or status. Almost all shrimp farms meet more than what are required under the Thai labour law or the global aquaculture standards for human resources. With the importance of migrant labour in Thailand, much still needs to be done in terms of assessing the impact of their working in Thailand on their families left behind in their own countries, as well as on their communities, including status of social protection to avoid exploitation.
Each stakeholder group strives to achieve sustainability so they can remain in operation in the next few years, to survive on the business individually and corporately, and to be the best provider of sustainably and ethically produced seafood for the world. The compliance to aquaculture global standards and certifications may be considered to contribute to the sustainability of operations by improving farm practices thereby reducing detrimental impacts on farm and external environments, as well as strengthening human relations with in the farm and in the community. However there are some aspects of these standards which could eliminate the small players. In this study, the large scale farms were more likely to comply with all the standards, followed by medium scale, and lastly the small scale farms.
The differences in perceptions which exist among these stakeholders should be understood by every sector and efforts should be made to address them so that there is cohesiveness in giving support to achieve sustainable seafood production and trade
Assessing environmental sustainability and value addition opportunities for by-products from aquaculture
Get PDFBy-products and mortalities from aquaculture have often posed significant challenges to the industry because of their low value resulting in high costs and environmental impact from their disposal. However increasing interest is being expressed in their utilisation to add value to the aquaculture industry and provide synergies with industries which had previously been in competition with aquaculture.
Current and prospective processing by-product and farm mortality utilisation strategies were reviewed along with regulations and standards which aim to control their use and protect against human and animal health hazards.
The role of aquaculture and fishery by-products in the supply of fishmeal was investigated and it was found that both sectors had the potential to contribute to increasing global supply. There were significant quantities of processing by-products identified which could be directed to fishmeal manufacture but there were also significant amounts of fish production which were not being processed in some regions and could also add to supplies. Processing by-products from aquaculture species often exceed 50% of the production by mass and therefore their efficient utilisation is of significant importance to the overall performance of the value chain. Their utilisation strategies are diverse and in some circumstances offer the possibility to add significant value.
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is increasingly being used to inform decision makers and consumers about the environmental performance of goods and services to make choices on best practices and informative decisions on purchasing choices. Current methodology in LCA was critiqued and developed to be used for identifying disproportionate impacts from by-product industries and comparative assessment of the eco-efficiency of value chains from Thai shrimp, Vietnamese Pangasius catfish and Scottish salmon aquaculture. New LCA methodology was developed assessing the eco-efficiency of co-products as a whole and in relation to a tonne of edible yield. Measuring the impact of the by-product industry in relation to their edible yield gave different results to measuring their eco-efficiency between the three study species. It was found that the Thai shrimp value chain was the most eco-efficient when by-products were directed to chitosan and hydrolysate manufacture, but production of the salmon was the least impacting between the species in terms of edible yield. Pangasius was the most environmentally impacting of the three species value chains using both methods. It was also found that the upstream impacts of fish and shrimp production, especially feed manufacture, contributed most to the environmental impact in most circumstances, using both economic and mass allocation. Although the methodology produced interesting results, there were some drawbacks and the data sets also had several gaps which led to some assumptions, which could have skewed the results and interpretation.
The cause of mortality for five aquaculture species in five countries and their subsequent utilisation was investigated. It was found that extensive systems were more prone to mortality than intensive systems in many cases. There was a wide range of strategies for mortality utilisation. In countries where by-product industries existed, farmers were often able to sell some of their mortality losses but in other areas, disposal could create health and biosecurity hazards.
In conclusion, it was found that both by-products and aquaculture mortalities could be utilised effectively and that the additional impact from their use was low in proportion to the rest of the value chain
Sustainable development of export-orientated farmed seafood in Mekong Delta, Vietnam
Get PDFAquaculture is playing an important role in the development of fisheries in Vietnam, a role which has accelerated since 2000. Sustainability in aquaculture is receiving increasing attention, and this issue is not only the concern of government, but also stakeholders participating in the value chain. Therefore, this study aims to identify sustainability issues of farmed seafood by assessing the main sustainability issues raising concern. The Global Value Chain framework described by Gereffi et al. (2005) is applied for this study to explore the business relationships in supply chain and the perceptions of sustainability concerned by the value chain actors. A combination of qualitative and quantitative methods was used to collect data. An assessment of four species cultured on the Mekong Delta, the countries farmed seafood ‘hub’, found a clear distinction between species cultured with a local domestic market orientation (Giant Freshwater Prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii; and Tilapia Oreochromis niloticus) and the two key export commodities - Striped catfish (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus) and Penaeid shrimp (Penaeus monodon & Litopenaeus vannamei). These orientations were based on a range of factors including the development of effective seed supplies and the cultural value of marketing in the live format. This study, conducted in ten provinces in the Mekong Delta from 2009 to 2013 had a focus on understanding the export-orientated commodities, striped catfish and shrimp through collection of baseline information on the value chain of farmed seafood, focusing on the farming sector, the actors and institutions involved and beneficiaries. Sustainability issues and perceptions of experts (top-down) and primary stakeholders (bottom-up) opinions were assessed through participatory workshops.
Shrimp and striped catfish production are mainly farmed for export, with 83% and 95% of its production, respectively, leaving the country mainly after processing. Currently, mainly families operate small-/medium-scale farms; while large-farms are integrated within seafood processors. Production efficiency of large-farms tends to be better than small-/medium farms. Many striped catfish and shrimp farms are likely to reach several standard criteria such as economic feed conversion ratio (eFCR), stocking density, no banned chemical/drug and wild-seed use, and land property rights; however, there were still many standard criteria that existing farms could not meet such as effluent management, farm registration, fishmeal control, farm hygiene and record-keeping requirement. Hence, current farming practices, especially small-/medium farms have a long way to go to meet emergent international food standards. Recently, many small-/medium catfish farms faced problems with low fish prices, so they have had to cease catfish farming activities and temporarily stop farming; while some larger farms also had to temporarily stop farming. Therefore, fish price has tended to be a main driving force for catfish farm changes. In the shrimp industry, there were technical changes occurring in the high intensity level of shrimp farms (HiLI); whereas, the remaining shrimp farms had fewer changes in farm management. Most HiLI shrimp farms were affected by AHPNS disease, which was a main factor driving their farm changes.
Many perceptions of sustainability were identified by stakeholder groups, however seven sustainability issues had a high level of agreement among stakeholders including input cost, capital & credit costs, unstable markets, government regulation & policy, disease, seed quality, water quality and water availability factors. Hatcheries, farmers and manager groups were more concerned about environmental issues; while for the input suppliers and processors, economics was the main issue. Farmers and processors were two main actors that played an important role in the production process of the value chain. Small-/medium farms dominated the number of farms overall and still played an important role in primary production. However, small-scale farms were considered as more vulnerable actors in the value chain, and they faced more difficulties in meeting increasing requirements on food quality/safety. To maintain the position in the value chain, the solutions could be horizontal and vertical coordination. Thus policy makers will need to find ways to include them in the planning processes. To reach sustainability will require the efforts of direct stakeholders, the role of the state agencies is essential in negotiation and diplomacy to create partnerships with the seafood importing countries. However, efforts to develop sustainable production become impossible without participation from importers, retailers and consumers
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Get PDFWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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