Potential U.S. Retail Grocery Markets for Farm-Raised Catfish

Abstract

In order to help develop a more comprehensive picture of catfish markets, the socio-economic factors that influence a store manager's decision to add catfish to the store's product line were assessed by a telephone survey of 1,800 grocery store managers. Quantitative analysis of these factors indicated that weekly sales volume, whether the store was part of a chain, and store size had a significant influence on the probability that a grocery store manager would choose to sell catfish. The results indicated that the probability that a store manager with high and middle income white clientele will choose to sell catfish is not different from that of the manager whose clientele is comprised of low income whites and/or non-whites. The results also suggested that the top three regions in terms of new market development were South Atlantic, East North Central, and Pacific.