The impact of aquatic animal disease information on consumer evaluation of the origin of juvenile shrimp for aquaculture

The invasion and spread of aquatic animal diseases from abroad reduces fisheries and aquaculture production and causes food security issues. If infection spreads to natural populations, it can also cause environmental issues. One measure to reduce such risks is the use of domestic seeds for aquaculture. This study aims to identify consumer preferences for domestic aquaculture seeds (juvenile shrimp) and how these preferences vary depending on what information is provided and on consumer sociodemographic characteristics. A discrete choice experiment was used in this study, and the results showed the following: (1) on average, environmental and food security information had no effect; (2) consumers responded more to the information the older they were, but this tended to weaken when they received both environmental and food security information; and (3) men and women responded contrastingly to food security information. Therefore, when providing consumers with information on aquatic animal diseases, it is necessary to consider the content and volume of the information depending on the gender and age of the target consumer group.