World Food Policy Volume/Issue 2-2/3-1 Fall 2015/Spring 2016 | Page 32

World Food Policy - Volume 2, Issue 2/Volume 3, Issue 1, Fall 2015/Spring 2016

Developing Local Sustainable Seafood Markets:
A Thai Example

Courtney KehoeA, Melissa MarschkeA, Wichitta UttamamuneeB, Jawanit
KittitornkoolB & Peter VandergeestC
Increasing awareness of degradation in ocean ecologies and fisheries has
made seafood a leading edge in the green marketing movement, with most
major buyers in the global North committing to buying seafood that has been
certified as sustainable. But what about the significant and growing Asian
markets, where seafood has become a healthy and prestigious food choice
among wealthier consumers? Is it possible to develop a market for sustainably
produced seafood among Asian consumers motivated by civil and ecological
concerns? To address these questions our research traces how a Thai Fisherfolk
Shop, located 4 hours to the south of Bangkok, has worked to develop an
alternative market for seafood caught by local, small-scale fishers. Although we
find that there is a mismatch between the volume of aquatic species that fishers
catch, the ability of the Shop to process, store, and sell seafood, and consumer
demand, our analysis suggests that it is possible to create a market for smallscale, sustainably sourced seafood in Thailand.
Keywords: small-scale fishers, sustainable seafood, conventions theory,
consumer awareness, Asian markets

Introduction

certification and ecolabeling. Under
ecolabeling schemes, retailers and food
companies seek to enhance brand value
through an association with sustainability.
Producers, in turn, may gain access
to particular markets for sustainably
harvested seafood, often in the EU and in
North America. Although the effectiveness
of these mechanisms in terms of their
ability to increase ecological sustainability
remains unclear, ecolabeling continues
to grow in prominence (Lay 2012; Ponte
2012; Hallstein and Villas-Boas 2013).

T

he sustainable seafood movement
began nearly two decades ago
in response to failing fisheries
management and the subsequent
degradation of ocean ecologies and
fisheries (Jacquet and Pauly 2007; Konefal
2013). Driven largely by nongovernmental
organizations (NGO), industry, and the
private sector, this movement sought
to fill a governance gap through the use
of market mechanisms like third-party
A

University of Ottawa, Canada
Prince of Songkla University, Thailand
C
York University, Canada
B

doi: 10.18278/wfp.2.2.3.1.3
32