To know global trade,
consider the lobster from
trade route to market.
There has been a 515% increase in the trade of fisheries products for human consumption from 1976 to 2014. This international scale leaves small-scale fishers and fishing economies vulnerable despite an apparent global market.
By mapping the global trade routes of lobsters Stoll et al (2018) have revealed vulnerabilities of small-scale producers in North America to changes in a small number of end-markets. In particular the trade routes make it harder to identify and anticipate risk – should the demand change (as a result of a trade-war between the USA and China for instance) the impact on the $1.5 billion-a-year Maine lobster industry would be vast.
This sciku also includes a reference to David Foster Wallace’s collection of essays – Consider the Lobster.
Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2018.00239