Freshwater aquaculture products in Asia

Production, accessibility, marketing and consumption patters of freshwater aquaculture products in Asia: a cross-country comparison

Overview

In the Asian countries included for this study - Bangladesh, China, India, the Philippines and Thailand - fisheries are a priority area. Broad sectoral macropolicies do not differ much although the countries may have differing strategies. All the countries aim to increase fish production, improve export earnings, provide more animal protein and expand employment opportunities.

Generally, the contribution of fisheries is increasing, except in Thailand, although the contribution from India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand to total world freshwater production is gradually decreasing. Freshwater fish from inland water in Bangladesh contributes most of the fish produced in the country. In China, cultured fish now dominates. Freshwater ponds are by far the largest contributors, supplying low-priced food fish for household consumption. In the Philippines, cage culture is equally popular.

Farm and pond sizes differ markedly between countries. Water bodies for aquaculture are largely owner-operated in Bangladesh, India, Thailand and the Philippines, unlike in China. While polyculture is a general practice in all the countries, monoculture is widely practised in China and the Philippines for cage culture and in Thailand for culture of carnivorous species such as walking catfish. Integration of animals with fish is also common in China, Thailand and Viet Nam. Rice-fish farming is also practised in these last two countries as well as in Indonesia and to some extent in the Philippines. Culture of fish (common carps) in running water systems is unique to Indonesia.

Bangladesh and India have major (Indian) carp (rohu, catla and mrigal) and silver carp as the dominant species. Tilapia is popular in Thailand and the Philippines, while milkfish and seaweeds are dominant in the Philippines, and walking catfish and Thai silver barb are important in Thailand. China differs in species composition, culture intensity, productivity and marketing. Fish farmers in Viet Nam produce both Indian major carps (rohu) and Chinese carps (common carp, silver carp and silver barb), but with differences between the northern and southern parts.

High stocking density and low use of supplementary feed and fertilizer characterize Bangladesh and India, and to some extent Thailand and the Philippines. Cultured ponds in Bangladesh, India and Viet Nam make use of relatively lower inputs and thus are semi-intensive or improved extensive. Freshwater farms are more of a subsistence nature in Bangladesh and Viet Nam, where aquaculture has developed mainly as a rural activity integrated into existing farming systems. In contrast, in China, India, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines, aquaculture is largely a commercial activity.

Yields, costs and returns vary considerably among countries, reflecting variations in intensity, production environments and systems, and culture practices. On average, China showed significantly higher yields and profits, while India showed lower yields and profits. Cage culture in Indonesia produced significantly higher yields than running water systems. Rates of return and break-even prices are lowest in Bangladesh and Thailand, which suggests that farmers from these countries are more cost-effective. After accounting for differences in input prices, farmers in northern Viet Nam appear more productive among the pond operators, based on quantity and value of production. For tilapia monoculture both in ponds and cages, China is more productive than the Philippines.

Costs and productivity

Feed costs account for most of the variable costs for pond operation in China and Thailand and in Indonesia's running water and cage systems. For all countries except India, the cost share of fingerlings to total cost ranked after feed cost.

Women's participation is high in general in production activities in Bangladeshi aquaculture, and low in marketing, although it is high in marketing activities for all other countries. In general, involvement of womenfolk in the fields of fish production, processing and marketing has been on the increase in all the countries, although their participation is highest in fish marketing.

Fish consumption

Fish has become an increasingly important source of protein in most of these countries, except in the Philippines, with the annual rate of per caput fish consumption generally increasing. In most of these countries, especially Bangladesh, freshwater fish contribute significantly to the total per caput fish consumption, although diversion of output for export purposes is reducing supplies for local markets.

Fish consumption preferences vary across countries, but in general

  • higher-income groups consume more fish, though the proportion of the food budget allocated to fish expenditure is higher among low-income groups;
  • rural people consume more than urban dwellers;
  • fish producers in general consume more fish than non-producers;
  • demand for fish is very sensitive to price changes.

Religious beliefs and ethnic and geographical differences also explain variations in fish consumption across countries.

Marketing and credit

Marketing is organized almost entirely by the private sector, with some degree of government intervention in China and the Philippines. Market structure, conduct and performance are poor in Bangladesh and India, but moderate in Thailand, China and the Philippines. Markets are poorly competitive in Bangladesh, India and the Philippines, but relatively more competitive in China and Thailand. Marketing channels are generally short due to the perishable nature of the product, but relatively longer in Bangladesh and Thailand. Marketing functions are smoother in Thailand as compared to Bangladesh. Marketing infrastructure is poor in Bangladesh and India, but fairly reasonable and hygienic in China, Thailand and the Philippines. Transport appears to be a very big problem. Barriers to entry are present in Bangladeshi and Indian fish markets, particularly at the primary assembly points. Producers' bargaining power is low in Bangladesh and India as compared to other countries, and middleman cartelization depresses producer prices. Marketing margins are usually high, and producers' share in retail prices is more than 50%.

Flow of institutional credit for production and marketing of fish is low in most of the countries, as it is dominated by the private sector.

The common constraints faced by freshwater fish farmers, especially in Bangladesh and India, include: pluralities of ownership, lack of credit facilities, lack of technical know-how, illegal poaching, deliberate poisoning and inadequate marketing opportunities. In addition, problems like multiplicity of pond ownership, non-recognition of aquaculture as a land-based activity, the absence of long-term leasing policies and non-assurance of seed supplies at appropriate times constrains the receipt of credit in India. In addition, the country is to some extent characterized by a social taboo against stocking community ponds. In general, common water bodies have been shrinking through degradation, encroachment and siltation, and industrial pollution is another problem for fish culture.

Conclusions and policy recommendations

Freshwater aquaculture can make a significant contribution to bridging the widening gap between demand for and supply of fishery products in Asia, in the face of declining capture fisheries production and growing populations. Sustainable development policies are needed that address use of natural resources, research, inputs and outputs and pricing, as well as problems in marketing, credit, trade, investment and exchange rates.

Plurality of ownership for closed water bodies that is hindering fish culture should be settled (in Bangladesh and India), and policy measures are needed to ensure equitable access to land and water resources by various groups.

Protecting cultured water bodies from floods is very important for countries like Bangladesh and India. In all countries, water pollution due to discharge of industrial pollutants needs to be minimized if it cannot be stopped. Water use conflicts between crops and aquaculture should be minimized as far as possible. Fertilizers and agro-chemicals should be used judiciously on crops to protect the natural habitats of fish.

Countries with extensive and traditional fish culture practices (Bangladesh, India, and Thailand) should encourage intensive use of inputs to move to semi-intensive fish culture.

Considerable public investment in infrastructure, capacity building and institutional strengthening is needed for sustainable development of aquaculture in most of the countries, with special attention to easing credit constraints. Marketing and related infrastructure improvements required include more physical space in fish markets (Bangladesh, India); standardization in weighing; open-price bidding (auctioning); quality control measures; grading and pricing; and display of prices. Refrigerated transport is required for transport of fish, as well as adequate icing facilities at markets, to provide good quality fish for consumers and to help producers obtain better market prices.

Research aimed at increasing productivity and sustaining productivity gains in the long run to meet the demand of the growing population should be continued. Research on fish nutrition should be undertaken in order to develop cheap but good quality feed. Identification of potential future constraints to sectoral growth is an equally important area of research. Changing attitudes to decentralization implies more need for networking in the form of collaboration between research institutions and between countries, and policies to this end need to be formulated and nurtured. Policy guidelines involving the participation of the private sector in research areas like fish marketing and processing should also be drawn up and followed through.

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