Janitor fish skin leather: a potential solution to local water's degradation and fish species deterioration
2010
Delos Reyes, J.A. | Mendoza, M.L.C. | Padrid, J.C., Philippines Univ. Los Baños, College, Laguna (Philippines). Coll. of Economics and Management
As early as 1998, the unabated proliferation of Janitor Fishes (Pterygoplichtys pardalis and Pterygoplichtus disjunctivus) in the Philippines was considered a pest outbreak already but is still unresolved until now. In the meantime, the technical possibility and financial viability of turning the janitor fish skin into more economically useful leather have already been proven. This study is in support of earlier studies on Janitor Fish as possible source of leather since it assessed the market potential of leather and leather products from janitor Fish skin and therefore a possible solution to local water's degradation and fish species deterioration not only in the National Capital Region (NCR) and Bulacan but the whole country as well. Primary data were obtained through a survey of 275 potential end-users employed in various occupations in NCR, 10 tanneries from Bulacan and 20 leather goods manufacturers. Descriptive, logit regression and SWOT analyses were employed. Results revealed the good market potantial of the Janitor Fish skin leather since 60% of the 275 end-user-respondents were willing to purchase leather products from Janitor Fish skin and 70% of the tanneries utilizing cow hides and 67% of those using carabao skin were willing to shift to Janitor Fish skin leather. Similarly, 85% of the leather goods manufacturers signified their willingness to shift a proportion of their leather goods production from cow hides to Janitor Fish skin. Janitor Fish leather was also found price competitive considering the fact that its physical attributes are at par with that of the currently utilized leather materials. Foremost among the recommendations is the development of safe and proper breeding technology that will ensure not only the supply of Janitor Fish but also the safety of the local waters.
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