Economic Evaluation of Early Sex Determination for Farmed Russian Sturgeon: The Case of Northern Israel ()
ABSTRACT
Sturgeon farming has high potential economic value,
but the industry is characterized by late fish maturity, leading to a long
payback period for sturgeon farms. Early sex determination (ESD) of fish is
important for increasing the profitability of sturgeon farms due to early male
separation, thus enabling growing more females and producing more caviar for
the same farm area. The data for Russian sturgeons farmed in northern Israel
and the results of molecular markers developed for ESD are used in this study.
Two sturgeon sex determination technologies are examined and compared from an
economic point of view: 1) using molecular DNA markers for ESD at the age of
0.5 years; and 2) using endoscopic methods at the age of 3.5 years, as is
currently done in many sturgeon farms. For this purpose, a bio-economic model
of a sturgeon farm was developed and an economic evaluation of a sturgeon farm
was made to compare both technologies. The ESD technology results in a
significant improvement in the economic performance of sturgeon farms. This
improvement is greater when caviar prices are lower.
Share and Cite:
Yom Din, G. and Degani, G. (2020) Economic Evaluation of Early Sex Determination for Farmed Russian Sturgeon: The Case of Northern Israel.
Modern Economy,
11, 1977-1983. doi:
10.4236/me.2020.1112132.