Stimulating UK Adolescents’ Seafood Consumption

The health benefits of seafood consumption are well known, however, consumption levels in the UK remain below recommended levels of two servings per week. Seafood consumption is beneficial for adolescents, as it is associated with physical and mental well-being, lower levels of obesity, and improved cognitive performance and academic achievement. This study investigated current consumption, preferences, and attitudes toward seafood among UK adolescents. Seven focus groups were conducted in two schools with diverse socio-economic student profiles. Findings revealed that seafood consumption levels vary considerably among individuals and typically takes a less healthy form (e.g., fish and chips). Key drivers of seafood consumption include health and taste, while barriers were typically associated with the sensory qualities of seafood including dislike of taste, bones, smell, and texture. A range of intervention strategies were identified and new product ideas ranged from fun, fast-food, snack-style products to healthy meal options.     

Efficiency in wine grape production: comparing long‐established and newly developed regions of South Africa

Efficiency, partly based on technology, is central to international competitiveness. This article applies a stochastic frontier inefficiency model to a panel of 77 wine grape farms in South Africa between 2005 and 2015 and allows the comparison of efficiency levels for the old established wine regions with those of newer entrants. Thus, we investigate whether experience plus first choice of location matters more than the follower's advantage of newer technology. In all regions, a greater share of permanent labor and increased supervision raised efficiency, while more inorganic fertilizer and less irrigation has the opposite effect. Innovations in trellising had insignificant effects (except in the old regions) but not replacing old vines reduced efficiency. However, a higher proportion of red varietals also lowered efficiency in the old regions due to a fall in the price of red wine as these farmers continued to concentrate on quality reds. The new regions compensated for falling prices by increasing crop size with irrigation and fertilizer and extending the area planted, but with less concern for quality. This appears to be more successful in efficiency terms, but as international demand for quality wine increases it may be a poor long‐term strategy.     

Labour Demand in the Post‐apartheid South African Wine Industry

In 2013 the minimum agricultural wage in South Africa was increased by an unprecedented 51%. We use data on 77 Western Cape Province wine grape farms from 2005–2015 to estimate the impacts on employment. Previous post‐apartheid labour market reforms increased minimum wages substantially, but re‐entry to global markets after sanctions were lifted increased demand and this preserved jobs in the wine sector. However, by 2005 this demand growth had largely ceased. The long‐run wage elasticity for permanent employees was found to be ?0.4, but for casual workers the figure was ?4.7, so the 51% wage increase is likely to decimate casual employment in the future. Thus, the poorest and most vulnerable casual workers lose most in terms of jobs, incomes and secure livelihoods, whereas 80% of full‐time staff benefit from the higher minimum wages. Thus, the minimum wage change is likely to increase the gap between privileged permanent staff and casual workers. This result is not surprising in view of the long‐standing interdependence between farmers and their permanent workers in wine grape production.     

Valuing the Willingness‐to‐Pay for Sustainable Seafood: Integrated Multitrophic versus Closed Containment Aquaculture

Awareness of the environmental problems associated with conventional finfish aquaculture has stimulated interest in more sustainable production methods. For example, integrated multitrophic aquaculture (IMTA) combines the culturing of fish and extractive aquaculture species at one site to simulate a balanced natural system. In contrast, closed containment aquaculture (CCA) separates farming from the natural marine environment using closed water tanks on land or in water. We explore consumer preferences for salmon produced with IMTA or CCA rather than conventional technology and pose two questions: how aware of IMTA and CCA are salmon consumers on the U.S. West Coast and what are they willing to pay for salmon produced with these methods? Using a discrete choice experiment, we estimate marginal willingness‐to‐pay of 39.0% and 15.7% for IMTA and CCA, respectively, as a premium added to the price of conventionally farmed Atlantic salmon. Results using latent class analysis show that consumers with a strong preference for wild salmon have high marginal values for farmed salmon produced with IMTA or CCA, but the average consumer from this group would be unlikely to purchase it. Overall, 44.3% and 16.2% of the respondents preferred IMTA or CCA to conventional salmon farming, respectively, and IMTA was preferred to CCA when respondents were asked to choose one. La sensibilisation aux problèmes environnementaux liés à l’élevage de poissons classique suscite un intérêt pour des méthodes de production plus durables. Par exemple, l'aquaculture multitrophique intégrée (AMTI) combine l’élevage de poissons et d'espèces d'extraction sur un même site afin d'imiter un écosystème naturel équilibré. En revanche, l'aquaculture en parc clos (APC) consiste en un élevage hors du milieu marin naturel à l'aide de réservoirs étanches installés sur le sol ou dans l'eau. Dans la présente étude, nous avons analysé les préférences des consommateurs pour le saumon issu de l'AMTI ou de l'APC et celui issu de l’élevage classique. Nous nous sommes également posé deux questions : À quel point les consommateurs de saumon de la côte Ouest des États‐Unis connaissent‐ils l'AMTI et l'APC, et combien sont‐ils prêts à payer pour obtenir du saumon issu de ces méthodes de production? À l'aide de la méthode des choix discrets, nous avons obtenu un consentement à payer marginal de 39,0 % pour l'AMTI et de 15,7 % pour l'APC, de plus que le prix du saumon de l'Atlantique issu de l’élevage classique. Les résultats de l'analyse des classes latentes ont montré que les consommateurs qui affichaient une préférence marquée pour le saumon sauvage avaient des valeurs marginales élevées pour le saumon issu de l'AMTI ou de l'APC, mais qu'il était peu probable que le consommateur moyen de ce groupe en achète. Dans l'ensemble, les répondants ont indiqué préférer le saumon issu de l'AMTI ou de l'APC (44,3 % et 16,3 % respectivement) au saumon issu de l’élevage classique. De plus, s'ils avaient à choisir entre le saumon issu de l'AMTI ou de l'APC, ils choisiraient le saumon issu de l'AMTI.     

The Competitiveness of Former Coalfields: Manufacturing Managers' Perceptions of Competitiveness Strengths and Weaknesses in South Yorkshire

The last decade has seen a wide recognition of the chronic economic adjustment problems of the former coalfields of the UK. Arguably, the finest example of such an ex-mining area has been South Yorkshire. Common perceptions are of old mining communities that are lacking the key requisite characteristics to be sufficiently able to generate new and alternative forms of employment. That is, ex-coalfields are widely seen as possessing a poor set of the determining factors of economic competitiveness. This paper uses a study of manufacturing managers' perceptions of the determinants of competitiveness in the former mining area of South Yorkshire in order to shed new light on an established debate. It also takes an established methodology for assessing regional competitiveness and develops it into a more focused and valuable tool in feeding into the policy-making agenda. On the basis of the findings, some of the current policies aimed at the revitalisation of the economy of South Yorkshire's former coalfield are discussed, and a number of additions are suggested.     

THE INFORMATION CONTENT AND USEFULNESS OF THE TERM STRUCTURE OF THE NEW ZEALAND BANK BILL MARKET

This paper applies the rationality concept and expectations hypothesis to test the information efficiency of the term structure of the New Zealand bank bill market. Weekly data is collected from June 1986 to November 1988. The sample period is partitioned into two subperiods by the sharemarket crash in October 1987. The empirical results suggest the presence of a time varying risk premium. This is reflected by the significantly positive volatility measure in the first subperiod and the significant interest rate level variable in both subperiods. The forecast errors correlate significantly with the growth in money supply and overseas interest rate variables. Factors other than market information inefficiency could be responsible for the significant correlation; namely the impact of the sharemarket crash on market perceptions about inflation expectations and the non-simultaneous data problem in calculating the differential costs of borrowing. Despite the rejection of the joint hypothesis, forward rates are found to have information about future spot rates beyond that contained in past spot rates, and are able to predict interest rates at least 30 days ahead.