Marine Fish Marketing in North Kerala: An Analysis on the Role of Intermediaries in Domestic Fish Marketing

Abstract

 In Kerala, the marketing organization is surrounded by conventional accoutrements and lacks by and large modern system of management. Several projects like co-operativization of production, processing and primary sale of fish were introduced to free the fishermen from the exploitation of middlemen. Even, after the initiation of these projects, auctioning of fish at various centres was largely controlled by the middlemen, who extracted a major share of the gross sale proceeds as auction charges. They often failed to pay the fishermen the promised prices when the deals were finally reconciled and the fishermen who are indebted to the middlemen have been absolutely vulnerable in exercising any control in the sale of fish landed by them. This study focuses on analysing the role of intermediaries in the marketing of marine fishes with special reference to North Kerala.