Product Diversification, Will It Assure Future Market for South Asian Seafood Industry?

A Case Study of South Asia

Abstract

The demand for fish and fishery products is growing and exporters are changing their markets to achieve higher profit margins through diversification. This paper investigates the extent to which seafood products have been diversified in the absence of government safety nets and challenges from rivals. It examines past events and future issues based on a combination of secondary data analysis, literature reviews and interviews with key individuals in the industry. Seafood export figures from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Maldives and Sri Lanka are analyzed for the years 2000-2003 to determine the degree to which seafood producers have sought to diversify operations following the loss of market share and significant challenges within the global market. The results of Herfindhal diversity index reveal that the degree of seafood product diversification for the South Asian region as a whole improved slightly from 0.36 in 2000 to 0.27 in 2003. India and Sri Lanka have a more diversified product range compared with Bangladesh and Pakistan. Meanwhile, seafood production in Maldives is still geared towards the more specific production of tuna products. The dynamic nature of the international seafood market can be expected to produce a variety of country level adjustments rather than a single response by all producers in the South Asian region.