Production economics of shellfish aquaculture in Atlantic Canada: a preliminary analysis

Abstract. The determinants of shellfish aquaculture production in Atlantic Canada are investigated through the estimation of Cobb-Douglas production functions, relating production output to several independent input variables. The statistical analysis is carried out for both mussel and oyster culture, based on data collected in a survey of aquaculturists. For both production processes, capital investment and labour usage have a significant effect on production output. In addition, the level of managerial experience (estimated by the number of years in operation) plays a significant role in determining oyster production levels. Increasing returns to scale seem to exist for oyster culture techniques, while mussel culture exhibits constant returns to scale. Furthermore, our preliminary analysis suggests that from a private operator's perspective, labour usage on the average mussel farm is roughly optimal, while for the average oyster farm, an increased use of labour could be profitable. In contrast, for both mussel and oyster culture processes, there appears to be no economic incentive for increased capital investment.