Prices, Marketing Margins, and Structural Change in the King Mackerel Marketing System

The age-old conflict between producers and trucked to buyers, primarily by independent market middlemen in the food industry has truckers. A primary survey of Florida Atlantic surfaced in the finfish industry with respect to Coast wholesale fish dealers showed that 65 market prices, producer prices, and marketing percent of the king mackerel was shipped to margins. Unrest among fishermen (producers) the New York Fulton Fish Market. Secondary about the performance of the marketing syswholesalers on the New York market buy king tem for various species of finfish has sparked mackerel from Florida wholesalers for resale or numerous protests in the United States. Some sell them on the market for Florida wholesalers protests have ended in lawsuits; in other cases, on a commission basis. In this system, king marketing cooperatives and/or marketing assomackerel actually do not change product form ciations have been formed to integrate several from the time they are unloaded from the steps in the marketing process. These events fishing boats until they pass through the New have been common in the Florida Atlantic York market. Coast marketing system. During 1973, considerable changes occurred The conflict over prices and margins has in the Florida Atlantic Coast finfish marketing stimulated considerable economic research in system. Suits were initiated for price fixing the area of price spreads for many food comamong fish dealers and a class action suit of modities. However, only limited descriptions fishermen versus a fish dealer was initiated. In and no analyses have been done to examine addition, a group of king mackerel fishermen marketing margins for finfish. The objective of formed a marketing association during June this article is to determine the functional rela1973 and a marketing cooperative began busitionship between the marketing margin and ness in December 1974 in an effort to increase market prices, volume marketed, change in fishermen prices or reduce possible excessive market structure, and the cost of marketing marketing margins. One of the primary purservices. poses of this article is to identify the effects of The empirical analysis is limited to king these structural changes in the market system. mackerel (Scomberomorus cavalla) landed on A complete examination of prices and marthe Florida Atlantic Coast. U.S. king mackergins requires data for each level of the market al comes from the southeastern states from system. Unfortunately, prices for each marketTexas through North Carolina. Florida king ing level in the finfish marketing system are mackeral landings were valued at $2.4 million not available. The only available prices are at in 1975 [6] and accounted for 93 percent of the producer level (sometimes referred to as United States landings of this species. The the fishermen price, dockside price, or the exAtlantic Coast of Florida produced more than vessel price) and for the New York Fulton Fish 54 percent of U.S. landings. Market. The New York price level represents the price received by secondary wholesalers as they sell to other wholesalers and retailers. PRIMARY MARKET SYSTEM