ABSTRACT
The short history of industrialization of shrimp aquaculture in Southeast Asia has been told before (Goss et al., 2000; Hall, 2004; Lebel et al., 2002; Neiland et al., 2001; Primavera, 1998; Vandergeest et al., 1999). It shares characteristics with other global luxury food commodity networks in which production takes place largely in developing countries and most, but not all, consumption is in wealthier countries (Henderson et al., 2002; Kagawa & Bailey, 2006). And like salmon farming, growing shrimp depends on feed made from harvesting wild fish sourced globally (Deutsch et al., 2007; Naylor et al., 1998, 2000). Governance is complex, involving many actors in vertical and horizontal networks. Knowledge of, and power over, technologies, markets, and critical natural resources is often unevenly distributed and allocated. Producers in low income countries are in intense competition with one another for access to export markets (Phillips et al., 2003). Retailers and importers deploy quality assurance schemes to increase their control over products and profits in the commodity chain. Meeting the product quality and volume requirements of distant consumers requires attention to conventions, business alliances, trade rules, and market knowledge (Phillips et al., 2003; Vandergeest, 2007).
