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Effects of Economic Restructuring on Household Commodity Production in the Louisiana Shrimp Fishery

The Louisiana shrimp fishery has experienced a collapse in the price of shrimp since 2001. The principal reason for this collapse is increasing shrimp imports. Examining the political economy of agro-food systems and the interrelated household economies of Louisiana shrimp fisherpeople, this thesis asks how household commodity production, where fishers own their means of production and supply most labor themselves, is being restructured by the liberalization of seafood trade. Shrimpers have drawn increasingly on household resources (such as unwaged labor of family members) that are normally devoted to social reproduction to maintain their participation in household commodity production. In other words, households shift resources out of the family and into the economy in order to make good on losses of cash income they suffer from low prices. Households continue producing at de facto wage levels below that necessary to support the household on shrimping income alone.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:arizona.edu/oai:arizona.openrepository.com:10150/193285
Date January 2005
CreatorsMarks, Brian J
ContributorsMarston, Sallie, Marston, Sallie
PublisherThe University of Arizona.
Source SetsUniversity of Arizona
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typetext, Electronic Thesis
RightsCopyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author.

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