{"title":"Exploring the economic efficiency of trout farms: The dual impact of temperature and dissolved oxygen at high altitudes","authors":"Hiva Asadikia, Seyed Habibollah Mosavi, Tannaz Alizadeh Ashrafi, Michael R.Reed, Shraddha Hegde, Hamed Najafi Alamdarlo, Sadegh Khalilian","doi":"10.1111/jwas.70047","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>Rainbow trout (<i>Oncorhynchus mykiss</i>) are one of the most widely farmed fish species in aquaculture both globally and in Iran. While high-altitude trout farms benefit from colder temperatures favorable to trout farming, they also face challenges due to lower dissolved oxygen (DO) levels inherent to higher elevations. The overall impact of altitude on economic efficiency (EE) remains unclear. This study aims to fill this gap by analyzing the relationship between altitude and EE in trout farming, providing novel insights through the assessment of EE while exploring the effect of altitude in selected high-altitude aquaculture systems in Mazandaran, Iran. Using primary data collected from 25 trout farms in Mazandaran, we calculated EE scores through Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and assessed the impact of altitude using the Tobit model. Results indicate an average EE score of approximately 43%, despite subsidies supporting foreign trout egg imports. Findings from the Tobit model reveal that altitude negatively impacts EE, as the reduction in DO levels outweighs the benefits of cooler temperatures. These findings are specific to Mazandaran and may not apply to other regions. Our results suggest that genetic improvements alone (enhancing feed conversion ratios) are insufficient to improve EE in high-altitude farms in Mazandaran. Instead, reallocating subsidies from foreign trout eggs to investments in pressure swing adsorption (PSA) technology can significantly enhance EE by ensuring adequate DO levels. Implementing subsidized PSA equipment offers a practical and policy-relevant strategy to improve EE in high-altitude trout farms in Mazandaran. Future research should also incorporate additional confounding variables—such as broader genetic traits beyond feed conversion ratios (FCR), feed quality, and husbandry practices—to more comprehensively evaluate the drivers of economic efficiency.</p>","PeriodicalId":17284,"journal":{"name":"Journal of The World Aquaculture Society","volume":"56 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.2000,"publicationDate":"2025-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jwas.70047","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of The World Aquaculture Society","FirstCategoryId":"97","ListUrlMain":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jwas.70047","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"FISHERIES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) are one of the most widely farmed fish species in aquaculture both globally and in Iran. While high-altitude trout farms benefit from colder temperatures favorable to trout farming, they also face challenges due to lower dissolved oxygen (DO) levels inherent to higher elevations. The overall impact of altitude on economic efficiency (EE) remains unclear. This study aims to fill this gap by analyzing the relationship between altitude and EE in trout farming, providing novel insights through the assessment of EE while exploring the effect of altitude in selected high-altitude aquaculture systems in Mazandaran, Iran. Using primary data collected from 25 trout farms in Mazandaran, we calculated EE scores through Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and assessed the impact of altitude using the Tobit model. Results indicate an average EE score of approximately 43%, despite subsidies supporting foreign trout egg imports. Findings from the Tobit model reveal that altitude negatively impacts EE, as the reduction in DO levels outweighs the benefits of cooler temperatures. These findings are specific to Mazandaran and may not apply to other regions. Our results suggest that genetic improvements alone (enhancing feed conversion ratios) are insufficient to improve EE in high-altitude farms in Mazandaran. Instead, reallocating subsidies from foreign trout eggs to investments in pressure swing adsorption (PSA) technology can significantly enhance EE by ensuring adequate DO levels. Implementing subsidized PSA equipment offers a practical and policy-relevant strategy to improve EE in high-altitude trout farms in Mazandaran. Future research should also incorporate additional confounding variables—such as broader genetic traits beyond feed conversion ratios (FCR), feed quality, and husbandry practices—to more comprehensively evaluate the drivers of economic efficiency.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of the World Aquaculture Society is an international scientific journal publishing original research on the culture of aquatic plants and animals including:
Nutrition;
Disease;
Genetics and breeding;
Physiology;
Environmental quality;
Culture systems engineering;
Husbandry practices;
Economics and marketing.