This study examines spillover effects resulting from US fishing regulations instituted to protect sea turtles. Sea turtles, along with US and foreign fisheries for swordfish co-occur on the high seas in the North and Central Pacific and that allows for “spillover effects.” When one fishery is required to curtail fishing activity to reduce incidental fishing mortality on sea turtle populations, the activity of other, unregulated fleets may change in ways that adversely affect the very species intended for protection. This study provides an empirical model that estimates these “spillover effects” on sea turtle bycatch resulting from production displacement between regulated US and less-regulated non-US fleets in the North and Central Pacific Ocean. The study demonstrates strong spillover effects, resulting in more sea turtle interaction due to increased foreign fleet activity when Hawaii swordfish production declines.

JEL Codes: Q51, Q58, Q5.

The production of farmed fish is growing rapidly and presents a sustainable and possibly low-cost alternative to wild fish. Thus, we may expect retail prices of farmed to be lower than prices of wild fish and demand to be less elastic. Otherwise, marketing of farmed fish may generate some extra value that justifies higher prices and may exhibit more elastic demand. To test these hypotheses, we employ monthly household scanner panel data for Germany from 2006 to 2010 for six frozen seafood products that include farmed and wild fish. A QUAIDS model is estimated by a consistent two-step procedure to account for censoring of the dependent variable. We find consumers to be price sensitive, particularly with regard to the high-value seafood species salmon and shrimp. This price elastic market implies that the German seafood industry still has the potential for growing revenues if production increases.

JEL Codes: C32, C33, D12, Q22.

This article presents a unified approach to correcting for avidity bias due to onsite sampling in estimation of descriptive statistics and recreation demand. We extend the Shaw (1988) correction for avidity bias in demand modeling to the Generalized Negative Binomial model, and we demonstrate the effects of avidity bias on descriptive statistics. Correcting for avidity bias in recreation demand lowers welfare estimates, which are still, however, quite large at $403/household, per trip (2002 USD). Correcting expenditure estimates increases economic impact by 17%, reflecting greater magnitude in spending patterns of less avid users that live further from Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

JEL Codes: C83, Q26, Q51.

This article presents a novel application of the essential input welfare measure to valuing sportfishing harvest. The approach was suggested 30 years ago and has only been applied two other times with market data and has never been applied in the recreation context. We model boat fuel as an essential input in the production of sportfish harvested offshore and trace the value of changes in harvest quality with shifts in the demand for boat fuel. To implement the model we generate the first estimate of the demand for sportfishing boat fuel using the infrequent-purchases model. The estimate of boat fuel price elasticity is more than six times larger than typical estimates for the household demand for automobile fuel. Our estimates of the value of fishing quality are similar to estimates using stated preference and travel cost methods, but have the advantage of being based on market purchases.

JEL Codes: Q260, Q510, Q220.

We investigate the relationship between quota enforcement, compliance, and capital accumulation in ITQ regulated fisheries. Overextraction and overcapacity represent two of the main fisheries management challenges, and we aim to model and analyze the two jointly. In a stylized resource model, quota violating and complying firms invest in capital, buy quotas, and choose their harvest. We show that in the short run, more capacity increases illegal extraction, while a well-functioning quota market partially alleviates this effect. We also show how tougher enforcement yields a double benefit by directly improving compliance and indirectly reducing incentives to invest in capacity, which improves future compliance. Our analysis thus contributes to the literature on market-based management of renewable resources.

JEL Codes: Q0, Q2, Q22, Q28.

Federal rules require raw meat and poultry products to carry nutrition information, but such rules do not extend to fresh (raw) seafood products. This article examines the extent to which providing nutrition information could impact consumers' choices for seafood, with a special focus on parents with children, because parents influence the food preferences of future generations. Using a choice experiment with a between subjects design, we find that providing nutrition information similar to the nutrition facts panel increases marginal willingness to pay (MWTP) for all types of seafood studied, whereas providing health benefit information of seafood is only effective for some types of seafood. This finding can inform the industry and policy makers on the potential impact of introducing nutrition labels for fresh seafood.

JEL Codes: C35, C90, M31, Q13, Q18.