Differentiated characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences among small-scale aquaculture producers: implications for sustainable intensification

Inland aquaculture is becoming an important source of animal-based protein in many low- and middle-income countries of Asia. In several of these countries such as Bangladesh the inland aquaculture sector is dominated by small-scale producers that rely on unimproved production practices. However, the...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Brako Dompreh, Eric, Wang, Quanli, Su, Jie, Dam Lam, Rodolfo, Barman, Benoy, Rossignoli, Cristiano, Gasparatos, Alexandros
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Springer 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/177745
_version_ 1855524930323480576
author Brako Dompreh, Eric
Wang, Quanli
Su, Jie
Dam Lam, Rodolfo
Barman, Benoy
Rossignoli, Cristiano
Gasparatos, Alexandros
author_browse Barman, Benoy
Brako Dompreh, Eric
Dam Lam, Rodolfo
Gasparatos, Alexandros
Rossignoli, Cristiano
Su, Jie
Wang, Quanli
author_facet Brako Dompreh, Eric
Wang, Quanli
Su, Jie
Dam Lam, Rodolfo
Barman, Benoy
Rossignoli, Cristiano
Gasparatos, Alexandros
author_sort Brako Dompreh, Eric
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Inland aquaculture is becoming an important source of animal-based protein in many low- and middle-income countries of Asia. In several of these countries such as Bangladesh the inland aquaculture sector is dominated by small-scale producers that rely on unimproved production practices. However, the heterogeneity of these producers is not well understood, leading to assumptions of low variability in both the underlying characteristics of aquaculture production systems, as well as their sustainability performance. This in turn can lead to the ineffective design and implementation of interventions and policies for the sustainable intensification of the sector. This study explores the differentiated characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences among carp producers in Bangladesh. We focus on Bangladesh as it is the 5th largest inland aquaculture producer globally, with the sector contributing significantly to livelihoods and food security. We undertake comprehensive in person surveys with 4540 carp producers across 54 regions of the country. We use 18 production variables to develop a nuanced typology of carp production systems using Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Hierarchical Clustering Approach (HCA). We then assess whether these production systems have significantly different sustainability performance across eight socioeconomic and environmental indicators. Finally, we elicit the preferences of producers for improved carp species through three choice experiments. Overall, we identify four major types of carp production systems, characterized by very different production characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences for improved fish species attributes. Collectively, our results provide a nuanced picture of the carp aquaculture sector in Bangladesh, which moves beyond simple binaries (e.g., commercial vs. subsistence; intensive vs. extensive; large-scale vs. small-scale). This information can inform the development and implementation of fit-for-purpose interventions for the sustainable intensification of the sector.
format Journal Article
id CGSpace177745
institution CGIAR Consortium
language Inglés
publishDate 2025
publishDateRange 2025
publishDateSort 2025
publisher Springer
publisherStr Springer
record_format dspace
spelling CGSpace1777452026-01-24T02:07:19Z Differentiated characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences among small-scale aquaculture producers: implications for sustainable intensification Brako Dompreh, Eric Wang, Quanli Su, Jie Dam Lam, Rodolfo Barman, Benoy Rossignoli, Cristiano Gasparatos, Alexandros aquaculture food security sustainable intensification bangladesh fish choice experiment improved fish strains food system characterization Inland aquaculture is becoming an important source of animal-based protein in many low- and middle-income countries of Asia. In several of these countries such as Bangladesh the inland aquaculture sector is dominated by small-scale producers that rely on unimproved production practices. However, the heterogeneity of these producers is not well understood, leading to assumptions of low variability in both the underlying characteristics of aquaculture production systems, as well as their sustainability performance. This in turn can lead to the ineffective design and implementation of interventions and policies for the sustainable intensification of the sector. This study explores the differentiated characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences among carp producers in Bangladesh. We focus on Bangladesh as it is the 5th largest inland aquaculture producer globally, with the sector contributing significantly to livelihoods and food security. We undertake comprehensive in person surveys with 4540 carp producers across 54 regions of the country. We use 18 production variables to develop a nuanced typology of carp production systems using Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Hierarchical Clustering Approach (HCA). We then assess whether these production systems have significantly different sustainability performance across eight socioeconomic and environmental indicators. Finally, we elicit the preferences of producers for improved carp species through three choice experiments. Overall, we identify four major types of carp production systems, characterized by very different production characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences for improved fish species attributes. Collectively, our results provide a nuanced picture of the carp aquaculture sector in Bangladesh, which moves beyond simple binaries (e.g., commercial vs. subsistence; intensive vs. extensive; large-scale vs. small-scale). This information can inform the development and implementation of fit-for-purpose interventions for the sustainable intensification of the sector. 2025-11-11T03:29:18Z 2025-11-11T03:29:18Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/177745 en Open Access application/pdf Springer Eric Brako Dompreh, Quanli Wang, Jie Su, Rodolfo Dam Lam, Benoy Barman, Cristiano Rossignoli, Alexandros Gasparatos. (1/8/2025). Differentiated characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences among small-scale aquaculture producers: implications for sustainable intensification. Sustainability Science.
spellingShingle aquaculture
food security
sustainable intensification
bangladesh
fish
choice experiment
improved fish strains
food system characterization
Brako Dompreh, Eric
Wang, Quanli
Su, Jie
Dam Lam, Rodolfo
Barman, Benoy
Rossignoli, Cristiano
Gasparatos, Alexandros
Differentiated characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences among small-scale aquaculture producers: implications for sustainable intensification
title Differentiated characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences among small-scale aquaculture producers: implications for sustainable intensification
title_full Differentiated characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences among small-scale aquaculture producers: implications for sustainable intensification
title_fullStr Differentiated characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences among small-scale aquaculture producers: implications for sustainable intensification
title_full_unstemmed Differentiated characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences among small-scale aquaculture producers: implications for sustainable intensification
title_short Differentiated characteristics, sustainability performance and preferences among small-scale aquaculture producers: implications for sustainable intensification
title_sort differentiated characteristics sustainability performance and preferences among small scale aquaculture producers implications for sustainable intensification
topic aquaculture
food security
sustainable intensification
bangladesh
fish
choice experiment
improved fish strains
food system characterization
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/177745
work_keys_str_mv AT brakodompreheric differentiatedcharacteristicssustainabilityperformanceandpreferencesamongsmallscaleaquacultureproducersimplicationsforsustainableintensification
AT wangquanli differentiatedcharacteristicssustainabilityperformanceandpreferencesamongsmallscaleaquacultureproducersimplicationsforsustainableintensification
AT sujie differentiatedcharacteristicssustainabilityperformanceandpreferencesamongsmallscaleaquacultureproducersimplicationsforsustainableintensification
AT damlamrodolfo differentiatedcharacteristicssustainabilityperformanceandpreferencesamongsmallscaleaquacultureproducersimplicationsforsustainableintensification
AT barmanbenoy differentiatedcharacteristicssustainabilityperformanceandpreferencesamongsmallscaleaquacultureproducersimplicationsforsustainableintensification
AT rossignolicristiano differentiatedcharacteristicssustainabilityperformanceandpreferencesamongsmallscaleaquacultureproducersimplicationsforsustainableintensification
AT gasparatosalexandros differentiatedcharacteristicssustainabilityperformanceandpreferencesamongsmallscaleaquacultureproducersimplicationsforsustainableintensification