Determinants of urban consumer expenditure on aquatic products in Shanghai, China

Abstract Consumption of aquatic products in China continues to grow and encourages the expansion of aquaculture farms. The examination of factors influencing expenditures on all aquatic products, freshwater fish, squid/octopus, and shellfish uses survey data collected from residents of Shanghai, China. The use of the Tobit modeling approach identified socio-demographic variables such as income, aquatic product safety perceptions, and preferences for quality as significant determinants of expenditures on aquatic product categories. Expenditures tend to increase with age, but the effect of education varies with regard to specific categories, suggesting distinct choices of educated consumers. Wives tend to spend substantially less on aquatic products than husbands. Knowledge of past sickness due to ingestion of aquatic products causes expenditures to drop in all categories, while quality certification, certified organic origin, and certified aquaculture products increase expenditure in selected categories. Monitoring consumer socio-demographic profiles and establishing transparent quality certification systems will benefit aquaculture farms and aquatic product marketers.