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This chapter opens the second part of the Volume, focusing on the small farms' role and dynamics within the evolving food system. Assessing small farmers' actual and potential contribution to the change towards a sustainable food and nutrition security requires a deep understanding of their strategic decision-making processes. These processes take place in a context highly conditioned by internal and external conditions, including the complex relations between farm and household, which are mapped and described. Building on an adaptation of Porter's model (Porter, 1990), the chapter investigates how farmers, given those conditions, define their strategies (in particular their innovation strategies) aimed at economic and financial sustainability through a multidisciplinary analysis of scientific literature. Internal conditions are identified in the light of the Agricultural Household Model (Singh & Subramanian, 1986) which emphasizes how family farming strategies aim at combining business-related objectives, and family welfare. Then, a comprehensive set of external conditions is identified and then grouped within eight categories: ‘Factors’, ‘Demand’, ‘Finance and Risk’, ‘Regulation and Policy’, ‘Technological’, ‘Ecological’, ‘Socio-institutional’ and ‘Socio-demographic’. Similarly, six types of strategies are identified: ‘Agro-industrial competitiveness’, ‘Blurring farm borders’, ‘Rural development’, ‘Risk management’, ‘Political support’ and ‘Coping with farming decline’.

The study aims to provide important insights into environmental attributes that are relevant to consumer's choices in purchasing canned tuna fish, and how much these attributes and socio-demographic individual characteristics relate to the frequency of consumption.

An online survey of 251 Italians was carried out. Socio-demographic variables and environmental attributes of the product that consumers pay attention to were considered in a two-step analysis: a cluster analysis used to create a segmentation of people's profiles that are further characterised; a binary logistic regression to assess the significance of attributes in relation to the frequency of canned tuna consumption.

Among attributes that respondents pay attention to when purchasing canned tuna, the country of origin is the aspect most considered, while other characteristics with a higher content of environmental sustainability received minimal attention. Three clusters emerged: the smallest one, insensitive to sustainability issues; an intermediate group which is mindful of sustainability attributes; and the biggest cluster which is “sustainability inconsistent.” Moreover, respondents who reported concerns about the environmental impacts of tuna production are less likely to consume the product than other consumers; attention paid to the method of farming, the presence of children and a young age show willingness to consume tuna.

This study contributes to the literature on canned tuna consumption by focusing on the attention that consumers pay to environmental product attributes in their purchasing choices. The relevance of this topic might be envisaged in relation to several environmental issues associated with tuna production and consumption, and to the economics and strategies of the tuna industry, being canned tuna among the most internationally traded seafood products.

Aquaculture insurance has the potential of redressing climate-change because it serves as an alternative source of finance in the event of unforeseen circumstances. To this end, the authors examine the prospects, determinants and profitability of aquaculture insurance among fish farmers in the Eastern region of Ghana.

A total of 140 fish farmers were sampled for the study. Thematic analysis was used to determine perceived aquaculture insurance prospects. The Heckman's two-stage model, profitability index (PI) and return on investment (ROI) was employed to respectively determine the factors influencing aquaculture insurance participation and amount intensity and the profitability of aquaculture.

The thematic analysis revealed three themes on the perception of aquaculture insurance prospects: loss recovery, farm renovation and promotes agriculture. Different sets of demographic and institutional factors have varying influences on aquaculture insurance participation and amount intensity. Profitability index (PI) and return on investment (ROI) were respectively 2.07 and 3.2%.

The research provides relevant information on perceived aquaculture insurance prospects, aquaculture insurance participation, and amount intensity and profitability of aquaculture which can contribute to enhancing aquaculture insurance and the aquaculture industry in Ghana.

Describes some of the important nutritional issues involved in the development of farming techniques for marine fish. The key phase of larval rearing remains dependent on the use of live foods, but because of problems with the nutritional quality as well as availability of the limited number of suitable organisms their replacement with suitable formulated feeds is a high current priority. Feeding the juvenile stages is less challenging, but there is a need to maximize the utilization of these feeds in order to improve cost effectiveness. An important issue during the on‐growing stages, when food demand is high and a major component of production costs, is the need to identify and develop alternative protein sources to fish meal.

Director, Fisheries Department, Mizoram Government, wanted to develop the fisheries sector by utilizing natural land water & fish resources, not only for augmenting food production of state to reach a stage of self dependency for fish requirement, but also to generate employment, developing leadership, team building & entrepreneurial skill among the people. He was particularly examining the scope of training, innovation & initiatives that could be implemented to provide a market oriented focus for the Department.

This paper aims to investigate how small and medium sized aquaculture producers in the Mediterranean might move from traditional high volume output systems to become more market oriented.

The quantitative methodology was devised to assess production trends and potential of seabass and seabream farmed off most of the countries bordering the Mediterranean. In addition to markets adjacent to the Mediterranean producers, those in Northern Europe are also included because of the opportunities for market expansion and product diversification.

It is concluded that greatest scope for industry gain lies in supply channel members being more market oriented to meet the dynamic and varied demands of consumers. The historic, but still predominant, one‐size fits all philosophy and business approach to fish farming is outdated and demands radical revision to realise potential added value of the industry. This is all the more important as consumers, pressure groups and governments become more aware of the political, economic and environmental impact of food miles and wider sustainable production issues, encouraging many international food markets to move away from an emphasis on cheap food.

The study has practical implications for European Union aquaculture policy and small to medium‐sized enterprise development to ensure more sustainable production and to promote positive benefits in often peripheral and fragile rural economies where alternative options are commonly rare and/or conflicting.

The research highlights the challenges of a sector with spatially disparate points of production and consumption coupled with a highly perishable product critically dependent on efficient distribution whilst facing emergent environmental concerns over sustainable food production systems.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the level of good aquaculture practice (GAqP) among aquaculture farmers; and to analyse the factors influence the level of practice and the importance of GAqP in increasing farmer’s income.

Primary data were obtained through a survey conducted on 216 aquaculture pond fish farmers. The descriptive study was employed to identify the profile of respondents and their level of GAqP practices. The structural equation modelling (SEM) method was applied to analyse the factors influence the level of GAqP practice, and the influence of GAqP on the total income of aquaculture farmers.

The results showed that the pond management by brackish water fish farmers is better than freshwater fish farmer, indicated by 77 per cent of them adopt GAqP at a level of 60 per cent and above, as compared to only 20 per cent by freshwater farmers. Physical and human assets were revealed to be most significant factors influence the practice of GAqP. The results also proved that GAqP was among the significant factor contributes to increasing in farmers’ household income; in addition to their other livelihood assets.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the very first study that employs SEM method to analyse the relationship between GAqP with livelihood asset and farmer’s income simultaneously in Malaysia. Furthermore, since the empirical studies related to GAqP is very few, the study will contribute to development of knowledge in the field of aquaculture.

Without aspiring to emulate Robert Browning's song thrush, we venture to repeat an admonition on smoking in the food trade of almost a decade ago. (The Smoking Habit, 1962, BFJ, 64, 79). The first time it coincided with a little research we had undertaken, which later saw the light of day epitomized in article form and was enthusiastically (sic) commented upon in sections of the press and then died as if it had never been born. (Tobacco and Lung Cancer, 1965, Med. Offr., 2955, 148). Now, it coincides with the most concentrated, officially inspired, campaign, so far, mounted against the evils of smoking. The most striking fact about all these national efforts every few years is the lack of success in real terms. A marketing organization achieving such poor results would count it a costly failure. It would be unfair to say that none have given up, but with a habit so ingrained, determination is required and in many, if not most, of those able to refrain, the craving is so great that they are smoking again within a week or so. Overall, the smoking population is enormous, including, as it does, girls and women‐folk. Once, it was undignified for a woman to be seen smoking. We recall a visit by Queen Mary to the village Manor House, just after the First War; she was an expert in antique furniture and came to see the manor's collection. When Her Majesty asked for a cigarette, the village rang with astonishment for days. Nothing as amazing had happened since Cavaliers and Roundheads tethered their horses beneath the three great poplars which stood on the green. “Queen Mary! 'er smokes!”

The study here examines how business actors adapt to changes in networks by analyzing their perceptions or their network pictures. The study is exploratory or iterative in the sense that revisions occur to the research question, method, theory, and context as an integral part of the research process.

Changes within networks receive less research attention, although considerable research exists on explaining business network structures in different research traditions. This study analyzes changes in networks in terms of the industrial network approach. This approach sees networks as connected relationships between actors, where interdependent companies interact based on their sensemaking of their relevant network environment. The study develops a concept of network change as well as an operationalization for comparing perceptions of change, where the study introduces a template model of dottograms to systematically analyze differences in perceptions. The study then applies the model to analyze findings from a case study of Norwegian/Japanese seafood distribution, and the chapter provides a rich description of a complex system facing considerable pressure to change. In-depth personal interviews and cognitive mapping techniques are the main research tools applied, in addition to tracer studies and personal observation.

The dottogram method represents a valuable contribution to case study research as it enables systematic within-case and across-case analyses. A further theoretical contribution of the study is the suggestion that network change is about actors seeking to change their network position to gain access to resources. Thereby, the study also implies a close relationship between the concepts network position and the network change that has not been discussed within the network approach in great detail.

Another major contribution of the study is the analysis of the role that network pictures play in actors' efforts to change their network position. The study develops seven propositions in an attempt to describe the role of network pictures in network change. So far, the relevant literature discusses network pictures mainly as a theoretical concept. Finally, the chapter concludes with important implications for management practice.