New product development of scallops and mussels
Final report
SCRC: PhD 5.03 The role of inbound Chinese tourists in promoting Australian seafood products in China (student Jasha Bowe)
This PhD proposal focuses on CRC's Program 1 goals. The key focus is on increased demand for Australian seafood in China, but our research has implications for marketing to any country that has substantial tourism in Australia: i.e., US, UK, mainland Europe, southern Asia. The project aims to reduce the costs and increasing the efficiency of promotion to higher income consumers, which should result in increased profitability throughout the value chain. The long term outcome should be additional profit margins through improved market access.
Final report
China is forecast to become Australia’s largest tourism source market by 2017. While China holds great potential for the export of Australian seafood products, it currently sits only sixth behind Japan, Hong Kong, Taipei, the United States and Singapore in export value.
Country‑of‑origin research has found a consumer’s perception of a country influences their behaviours towards its products. Tourism research reports that an individual's’ perception of a country determines how many of them will visit it. The combination of the increase in Chinese tourists to Australia and the relatively low market share and the awareness of Australian wine and seafood domestically in China means that country of origin perceptions for these products might be developing from a tourism‑image related perspective. These product categories are not well advertised in China and thus there would be few initial impressions, which provides a suitable platform to seek answers to the research objectives.
This thesis evaluates substantive theory on country‑of‑origin effects, develops understanding of the role of tourism in promoting the consumption of Australian made products, and demonstrates new outcomes that can be achieved by applying alternative methods to capturing these effects. It measures how Australia’s destination image affects Chinese consumers’ evaluation and choice of Australian wine and seafood.
Improvement in post harvest handling and marketing strategy for blue manna crabs
Progressing the recommendations from the scoping study report for abalone marketing and promotion
Australian abalone currently enjoys a relatively strong position in the market through steady demand for its product. However, its position could be better enhanced through an industry development plan that provides strategies with which to capitalize on its position as a provider of quality abalone. Although Australia produced 50% of the world’s supply it must continue to enhance its position in the global market.
Final report
The Australian abalone industry identified a clear need to continue with the work done by David McKinna and the investigation into the Australian abalone industry, its markets, global production, abalone consumption and consumption trends and Australia’s position in the market.
McKinna’s report provides a cursory look at the harvest and post harvest sectors of the industry identifying areas that could reduce the benefit of market opportunities. However, it also offers an in-depth analysis of global production, consumption and consumption trends and the position of abalone within overall seafood consumption.
The report offers strategic options to implement a program of industry development deal with issues relating to marketing and promotion that face the Australian abalone fishery. It provides several options, but avoids prescribing exactly what the thinks the Australian abalone industry needs to do. The only way forward is to get the majority of stakeholders to agree what should be done to achieve better outcomes.
One of the benefits that flow from this report is that it gives anyone who reads it, a comprehensive insight into the Australian abalone industry and where it is positioned in the global market.
According to the report the Australian abalone industry must develop a set of nationally accredited quality standards and market its products under an overarching brand or logo that unites the Australian abalone industry as one national industry; and identifies the product as being Australian in origin and superior to all other species of abalone.
The report clearly sets out the process by which industry can support a quality standard accreditation system and the development of a logo or brand for Australian abalone.
The first step toward supporting any recommendations is to hold a series of workshops to secure support from industry to invest in developing and improving itself throughout the length of the supply chain.
The objectives of the project were to secure a majority of support from the harvest and post harvest sectors of the Australian abalone fishery for a program of industry development funded by industry through a levy system and the development a draft options paper for an industry development plan based on the workshop outputs and the recommendations of the McKinna review.
Keywords: Industry consolidation, funding through a levy system, quality and product integrity standards, logo/brand.
SCRC: Understanding conditioning of Sydney Rock Oysters
The Sydney Rock Oyster (SRO) aquaculture industry is the largest and oldest aquaculture industry in NSW with annual revenue of approximately A$35 million (I&I NSW 2011). SRO breeding was initiated in 1990 through mass selection aiming to develop faster growing, winter mortality resistant lines (Nell et al. 2000). After five generations the average time to market size reduced by more than 12 months (Nell and Perkins 2005) and disease resistant lines were available. In 2004, the first progeny from 5th generation fast growing lines were distributed to oyster farmers in NSW. In comparison to wild-caught oysters, these stocks demonstrated clear differences in reproductive behaviour, which affected marketability in various estuaries throughout NSW (O’Connor and Dove 2011). While industry demand for selectively bred SRO remains strong (2011/2012 spat sales will exceed 20,000,000 and will form the basis of more than 20% of total production), these changes pose both challenges and opportunities for the entire SRO production cycle from the hatchery, where oysters in “ripe” reproductive condition are required for spawning, through to market where reproductive condition is a major determinant in “saleability”.
With the progression of the SRO breeding program from 3 “base” mass selected lines to 120 pair-mated families, investigation into the biology behind the altered condition index of selectively bred oysters is of great importance. Initially, there is a fundamental need for reproductive concurrency among lines to allow breeding. Secondly, genetic variability in reproductive condition offers the opportunity to manage marketability through the selection of lines whose characteristics suit market requirements.
Analysis of fish pricing in New South Wales: relationships between prices at auction and retail and between prices at Sydney and regional centres
Final report
Longlining for export quality sashimi tuna
Final report
At the start of this project, there was only the project vessel equipped with Japanese machinery and gear. During this year this has grown to eight vessels fully equipped to fish using Japanese methods and a further 15/20 vessels which have Australian devised systems using entirely monofilament gear. The monofilament gear has the advantage of being cheap and light but is restrictive in number of hooks that can be set and the depth fished.
The gross value of exports in the first year of the project is of the order of $500,000, it is expected that this figure will grow to $2 million during the year. This is based on estimated current catcher capability.
Given the success of the project thus far and the high prices being realised, the catcher fleet is expected to grow rapidly and the figure of $2 million may prove conservative.