Involving stakeholders to support sustainable development of the marine lobster aquaculture sector in Vietnam

This paper used a combination of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats analysis and analytical hierarchy process to analyze the challenges and prospects for the sustainable development of marine lobster aquaculture in Vietnam. This analysis was based on the participation of four stakeholder groups including representatives at the provincial level, district level, and commune level and lobster farmers. The results show that stakeholders have a relatively positive perception about the sustainable development of marine lobster aquaculture in Vietnam because they believe the strengths and opportunities outweigh the weaknesses and threats. The suitable natural conditions in Vietnam were considered as the most important strength, while the many untapped markets and the support of the government for the sector are key opportunities for further developing marine lobster aquaculture. The increased lobster mortality and frequency of disease outbreaks were considered as the main weaknesses. In addition, the complex development of disease pressure and the reliance on the Chinese market were considered the most crucial threats. The findings of this study can be used by policy-makers in Vietnam to further develop the marine lobster aquaculture sector

EFFICIENCY OF SOURCES OF IRRIGATION WATER IN OYSTER MUSHROOM PRODUCTION IN QUANG TRI PROVINCE: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Abstract: From the cross-sectional data of 94 oyster mushroom farms in Quang Tri province, this study estimates and compares technical, allocative and cost efficiency of the irrigation water from a factory and from wells by using Bootstrap input-oriented Data Envelopment Analysis. The empirical results indicate that oyster mushroom farms are substantially inefficient. The farms that use the irrigation water from a factory are more statistically efficient than those using the water from wells. The mean technical, allocative and cost efficiency of the irrigation water from a factory and from wells is 0.62, 0.58, 0.34 and 0.58, 0.52, 0.26, respectively. Therefore, shifting to use the water from a factory to irrigate oyster mushrooms is one of the proposed recommendations.Keywords: efficiency, oyster mushroom, bootstrap input-oriented Data Envelopment Analysi

Technical efficiency of prawn poly-culture in Tam Giang lagoon, Vietnam

This paper measured the mean technical efficiency of 91 percent in prawn poly-culture (prawn (Peneaus monodon)-rabbitfish (Siganus oramin)-others pattern) farms in Tam Giang lagoon, Vietnam, using an input-oriented VRS data envelopment analysis. The estimated technical super-efficiency was then regressed to the farmer characteristics, extension contacts, stocking density, and production environment to identify the determinants of technical efficiency of those farms. Experience of the operators, their attendance to aquaculture training courses were the factors positively influencing farm level efficiency, while prawn stocking density had negative relationship with their technical efficiency. The later results also revealed the problem of congestion in prawn poly-culture production process. Moreover, the positive coefficient of production environment dummy variable indicated the difference between two types of ecosystem: planned farms and unplanned farms. In addition, in comparison between the technical efficiency results of those two groups, the unplanned farms were less efficient than planned ones. A suggestion of planning aquaculture area in Tam Giang – Cau Hai lagoon system and cooperating between unplanned farms and governmental offices, as a result, were made to improve technical efficiency. Moreover, training more extension workers and conducting more aquaculture training courses were also suggested in order to have the desired increase in productivity. Finally is a hint of further study about the congestion problems which have not been dealt in this study

Technical efficiency of prawn poly-culture in Tam Giang lagoon, Vietnam

This paper measured the mean technical efficiency of 91 percent in prawn poly-culture (prawn (Peneaus monodon)-rabbitfish (Siganus oramin)-others pattern) farms in Tam Giang lagoon, Vietnam, using an input-oriented VRS data envelopment analysis. The estimated technical super-efficiency was then regressed to the farmer characteristics, extension contacts, stocking density, and production environment to identify the determinants of technical efficiency of those farms. Experience of the operators, their attendance to aquaculture training courses were the factors positively influencing farm level efficiency, while prawn stocking density had negative relationship with their technical efficiency. The later results also revealed the problem of congestion in prawn poly-culture production process. Moreover, the positive coefficient of production environment dummy variable indicated the difference between two types of ecosystem: planned farms and unplanned farms. In addition, in comparison between the technical efficiency results of those two groups, the unplanned farms were less efficient than planned ones. A suggestion of planning aquaculture area in Tam Giang – Cau Hai lagoon system and cooperating between unplanned farms and governmental offices, as a result, were made to improve technical efficiency. Moreover, training more extension workers and conducting more aquaculture training courses were also suggested in order to have the desired increase in productivity. Finally is a hint of further study about the congestion problems which have not been dealt in this study

Economic-environmental trade-offs in marine aquaculture : the case of lobster farming in Vietnam

Marine aquaculture has increased in importance in most countries over recent decades. In order to develop this sector in a sustainable way, it is necessary to consider its environmental impacts. In Vietnam, marine cage lobster cultivation has been seen as a high return business. However, in recent years, the sector has been facing sustainability issues, with recurrent disease outbreaks and increased lobster mortality. These phenomena are linked to nutrient pollution, which is attributed to the overuse of feed inputs. The annual loss for the sector is reported to be up to 30 million USD. Local lobster farmers have reacted to these issues by spending more on antibiotics and chemicals, or by increasing efforts to clean cages. This behavior suggests that farmers perceive a conflict between reducing environmental pressure and improving the economic performance of the sector. In order to identify the relationship between cost and environmental efficiency, this paper uses a Material Balance Principle based Data Envelopment Analysis approach using a dataset of 353 marine cage lobster farms in Vietnam. The findings show that improvements in input use efficiency would result in both lower production costs and better environmental performance. If lobster farms were to become more cost efficient, using a more appropriate input mix, given the input price information, this would benefit the environment. Similarly, improving environmental performance generally also reduces production costs

Analyzing the variations in cost-efficiency of marine cage lobster aquaculture in Vietnam : a two-stage bootstrap DEA approach

This study measures cost-efficiency and its determinants for 353 marine cage lobster farms in Vietnam using a two-stage bootstrap data envelopment analysis (DEA). In the first stage, the bootstrap DEA approach was used to obtain bias-corrected technical, allocative cost-efficiencies for the farms. Then, the bias-corrected cost-efficiency scores were regressed on a set of explanatory variables using a bootstrapped truncated regression. The results show that substantial cost-inefficiency occurs in lobster aquaculture due to the overuse of inputs, which, given the prevailing input prices, are also used in inappropriate ratios. Cost-efficiency is shown to be significantly impacted by the age of the farmer, total cage volume and by variables affecting the production environment such as the cage cleaning, distance to the nearest farms and the presence of other discharges into the marine environment