World Food Policy Volume/Issue 2-2/3-1 Fall 2015/Spring 2016 | Page 36

Developing Local Sustainable Seafood Markets: A Thai Example (c) set up channels for disseminating information and educating the public about marine conservation. Within the seven small-scale fisher groups, 66 fishers contributed 50,000 THB (~1500 USD1, or just over 22 USD each) to the startup of the Shop. The Shop also received significant budget support from Oxfam and investment from the Federation of Thai Fisherfolk Association. When the Shop was envisioned, stakeholders thought that seafood could be sourced exclusively from those fishers who initially contributed to the development of the Shop based upon the seasonality of their product. The methodological approach of our ar ticle is twofold: (a) case-specific research with fishers, Shop employees, and consumers and (b) an assessment of Shop procurement and sales practices to assess the economic viability of the Shop. Data collection included conducting interviews with consumers buying Shop seafood (n=12), key informant interviews with Shop staff (n=3) and with fishers (n=31), a focus group with fishers (n=6), and an analysis of Shop receipts detailing procurement of seafood and consumer sales from June 2014 to May 2015 (5371 receipts). Purchasing and sales data enabled us to gain a detailed understanding of the amount of seafood purchased, processed, and sold in Year 1 of Shop operations. Two of the authors also engaged in participant observation with fishers and Shop employees, complimented by time in Bangkok helping to sell Shop fish in the Spring and Summer of 2015. Key informant interview questions with fishers and Shop employees centered around five themes: background of involvement, knowledge of the Shop, operation of the Shop, supply chain management, and sustainability of the Shop. Consumer interviews, which focused on purchasing behavior, seafood consumption, and perceptions of the Shop, were carried out in two ways: (a) through random selection from the Shop’s LINE account—a smart phone application that allows consumers to subscribe to the Shop’s group, view product, and place orders—after which, participants were spoken with via video conference call (n=5) or telephone (n=3); and (b) face-to-face interviews (n=4) with consumers as they were purchasing Shop fish at a small urban farm in central Bangkok. A preliminary reflection of the characteristics of urban consumers who purchase Shop seafood suggests that consumers are largely female, single, with an undergraduate education, living with two or three people in the household. Results Seafood caught by local fishers W hile seven small-scale fishing groups supply the majority of seafood to the Shop, key informant interviews focused on one 1 Currency is converted from Thai Baht to United States Dollar using the average exchange rate (1 THB = 0.03 USD) for the duration of the study period (June 2014–October 2015). 36