Taking the Sea to Market: the Commodification of Marine Resources in Southeast Asia

Irendra Radjawali Institute of Oriental and Asian Studies, Bonn University, Germany radja@hotmail.com

Southeast Asia Today: Dynamics, Contradictions, Perspectives Universität Bonn , 26.-28.10.2012

• Comodification of marine resources [Tuna, Shark Fin, Tourism, “Nemo” and coral, Live Reef Food Fish (LRFF)]

• Focus on LRFF fishing and trade

• Food for thought

(Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:BlankMap-World-1957.png , FAO 2004, WCPFC 2012, SPC 2012, Orsini 2012)

2.2 Mio T

0.8 Mio T 0.4 Mio T

0.6 Mio T

1. Catching 2. Processed into frozen place 3. Pre-canning 4. Canning 5. Distribution

TUNA Commodification

Source: formaggiokitchen.com

Shark Fin Commodification

Sources: The Marine Products Association 2012, www.unitedconservationist.org, Shark Advocate International 2012)

70% are catched in the developing countries

Slicing off a shark‟s fin and discarding the body at sea

73-100 Mio. Shark killed / year

Account for 16% of total catch

Value (Indonesia) : US$ 10.6 Mio (1991)

Tourism commodification

Destinations:

Weh Island

Raja Ampat

Bunaken

Derawan

Bali & Lombok

Phuket

Pattaya

Koh Cang

Langkawi

Donsol

Cebu

Ornamental Fish and Coral Commodification

Source: Knittweis 2008, Jones 2008

“NEMO” Amphiprion ocellaris

photo:MarineBio

Annual total economic value:

Indonesia US$ 1.600.000.000

The Philippine US$ 1.000.000.000

Percentage of the total coral traded (2005):

Exporters: Indonesia, 91%

Importers: USA 65%, EU 24%

Red Soft Coral (Source: Radjawali 2010)

Fishing network

Risk insurance network

Trading network

Individual fisherman (Makassarese/Buginese: Paboya)

US/Europe based importer

Island-based collector (Makassarese/ Buginese: Punggawa)

Boat captain / owner

Makassar based collector (Indonesian: Bos)

Jakarta /Bali based collector (Indonesian: Bos)

Police

Water Police

1

3 4 5

6

8 9

7

1 2

Marine resources flow

Capital flow

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9 Boat crew / fishermen (Makassarese/ Buginese: Paboya)

Live reef food fish (LRFF) fishing and trade

Adapted from Scales et.al. 2006

Live reef food fish (LRFF) is the term used for fish

that are kept alive until cooking in order to preserve

their freshness. (Family Serranidae)

HK imports 13,000 tons in 2002 (official data)

Worth US$ 350 M Koeshendrajana 2006, Sadovy 2003

Total Hk Imports might reach 18,000 tons/year (+unreported)

US$ 450-500 M Muldoon and Scott 2005, Sadovy 2003

Global trade reaches 30,000 tons (HK accounted for 60%)

US$810M – US$1 B

Source: California Environmental Associate, 2011

1970-1980

1980-1990

1990-2000

2000-Now

Napoleon Wrasse

/ Cheilinus undulatus IUCN Redlist : Endangered

...constitute a new and unique type of tropical marine commodity because it hinges on the fish’s biophysical forms and their corresponding need to be constantly immersed in clean, cool, oxygen-rich seawater to survive. ..

Source: Muldoon 2012

150 islands with fringing reefs as well as a large number of barrier and submerged

patch reefs

Ponds in Jakarta or Bali Hong Kong

2 hours flight

6 hours flight

LRFF fishing and trading networks and its economic value

Baby (<0.6 kg) Super (0.6-1 kg) Up (>1.2 kg) Price in HK

Highfinned grouper 7.85 USD 23 USD 36.6 USD 250 USD

Spotted coral trout 3.66 USD 6.27 USD 7.85 USD 100-150 USD

Napoleon wrasse 36.6 USD 300 USD

Sizing rules

Sodium Nifrustyrenate terramicyn

Catching the fish

Sodium cyanide/

potassium cyanide

Keeping the fish „healthy and fresh‟ Anesthetizing the fish

Ready to transport

From The Sea to The Plate

LRFF networks

To what extent networks (social) play role in LRFF fishing and trade?

Fishing network

Prosecution insurance network

Trading network

1 2 3

5 6 7

11

8 9 10

13 14

4

12 fish

money

Contested Marine Resources

Actors: public, private,

government

Artisanal vs Large Scale

Everyday struggle

[livelihood, debt, credit, corruption, rent-

seeking, assymetry]

Environmental Debate

[Climate change, Marine Protected Areas

(MPA), sea level rise, fish depletion,

conservation, certification]

Illegal Unregulted Unreported

(IUU) Fishing

Border conflict [black fleet, fish

robbery]

Commodity fetishism

Food For Thought

• Actors [place based and non-placed based, ...]

• Commodification [produces nature in myriads ways]

• Place and space [where decision are made, where decision applied...]

• Networks and institution [rules, regulation, structure,centrality,...]

• Scale

• Discourses [Economic, Environmental, Nation-state, Social, Political,...]

• Everyday struggle [livelihood, debt, corruption, gender relations,...]

Things should be made as simple as possible but not

simpler - Albert Einstein

The goal of science is to make the wonderful and

complex understandable and simple, but not less

wonderful - Herb Simon, Science of the Artificial

Thank you , Danke