Consumers' knowledge, attitudes and willingness to pay for aquaponic products in Spain and Latin America

Aquaponics is a productive system in which the production of vegetables and fish is synergistically combined within a circular economy framework. Although these systems have been in development for more than 50 years, the presence of aquaponic products in the markets is still very limited. Previous studies have been carried out trying to characterise consumers, although none was focused on Spain and Latin America. In this work, 636 responses have been obtained to a survey with 27 questions, which has enabled characterising the preferences of potential consumers and their willingness to pay higher prices for aquaponic products. Nearly 60% of the respondents knew what aquaponic was and this knowledge was influenced by the academic level and the concern for the environment. Most participants considered aquaponics as a very interesting food production system. They were mainly motivated to consume aquaponic products due to their quality and taste and to the absence of pesticides or chemical residues. A remarkable influence of the household income, concern for the environment and, mostly, prior knowledge about aquaponics was found concerning the willingness to pay higher prices. Therefore, advertising campaigns providing specific information on this type of food production would be advisable to increase its degree of acceptance.