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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Stoneville, Mississippi » Warmwater Aquaculture Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #365665
Research Project: Evaluating Nutritional Requirements, Identifying Alternative Ingredients and Improving the Production Environment for Hybrid and Channel Catfish Production

Location: Warmwater Aquaculture Research Unit

Title: Factors driving aquaculture technology adoption

Author
item KUMAR, GANESH - Mississippi State University
item ENGLE, CAROLE - Engle-Stone Aquatics, Llc
item Tucker, Craig

Submitted to: Journal of the World Aquaculture Society
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/31/2018
Publication Date: 3/12/2018
Citation: Kumar, G., Engle, C., Tucker, C.S. 2018. Factors driving aquaculture technology adoption. Journal of the World Aquaculture Society. 49(3):447-476.

Interpretive Summary: This article summarizes the determinants of technology adoption and the technology dissemination process with respect to global aquaculture development. Shrimp, Atlantic salmon, tilapia, and the US catfish industries have incorporated a wide array of technological advancements along their respective industrial developments. Table 1 summarizes some of the key factors that were found to be vital in the advancement of technologies in major aquaculture industries. Methods used in development of innovations as well as approaches adopted to propagate them are essential components for popularizing aquaculture technologies. Farmers' perceptions of aquaculture technology is a key precondition for its adoption. Technologies that provide greater relative advantage in terms of productivity and costs were found to be favored by producers. The capital- and management-intensive nature of aquaculture seldom allows farmers to switch all their land to a new technology. Hence, technology components should be divisible and their results visible. Compatibility with social and environmental norms, lower degree of complexity, and consistency in results are important technology attributes that aid faster aquaculture dissemination.

Technical Abstract: Technology adoption has played a key role in the global development and increase in agricultural productivity. However, the decision to adopt a new technology on farms is complex. While the factors that drive the adoption of new technologies have been well studied in agriculture, less attention has been paid to drivers of technology adoption in aquaculture. Aquacultural technologies have developed and advanced rapidly in recent decades, but not all technologies have been adopted readily by farmers. This review paper summarizes some of the critical factors that influence aquaculture technology adoption decisions such as: (1) method of information transfer, (2) characteristics of the technology, (3) farm characteristics, (4) economic factors, and (5) sociodemographic and institutional factors. Fish farmers have tended to adopt technologies that are perceived to be more advantageous than others in terms of productivity, cost efficiency, and ease of management. Price of aquaculture products and profit expectations from business ventures were key economic factors influencing adoption decisions. Given the wide array of species, production practices, and global nature of aquaculture, the intensity and the extent of adoption of technologies depend on the nature of the industry in which they are adopted and their economic, social, political, and regulatory environments.