Resumo

FLORES MONTER, Yasiri Mayeli  e  CRESPO GUERRERO, José Manuel. Consumption Habits and Nutritional Value ff Marine Resources in the Diets ff Fishermen: Yucatan, Mexico. Invest. Geog [online]. 2023, n.110, e60690.  Epub 26-Jun-2023. ISSN 2448-7279.  https://doi.org/10.14350/rig.60690.

Marine resources are crucial concerning food sovereignty and nutrition by providing food and income. In the state of Yucatan, fishing represents an activity of great socioeconomic importance. The investigation includes office and field work. It is striking that fishing is often kept out of discussions related to food security and nutrition. However, several goals about the Sustainable Development in the 2030 Agenda deal with them. The first one (SDG1) intends to abolish poverty in its entirety. SDG2 encourages to end poverty, to reach food safety and improve nutrition standards. SDG14 backs the conservation and sustainable exploitation of oceans, seas and their resources.

Regarding that international framework, this research targets to disclose the consumption habits, as well as the nutritional value of the marine resources from the intake of Yucatán fishermen (Mexico). This federal entity comprises 373 km of coast and 15 fishing communities: Celestún, Sisal, Chuburná, Chelem, Progreso/Yucalpetén, Chicxulub, Telchac Puerto, San Crisanto, Chabihau, Santa Clara, Dzilam de Bravo, San Felipe, Río Lagartos, Las Coloradas y El Cuyo. According to official records, it is about 15,000 people that work as commercial fishermen in Yucatán, therefore having some remarkable socioeconomic impact on the coastal areas. The secondary objectives are 1.- to identify the different species of fish and shellfish consumed by fishermen; 2.- to recognize their habits and the frequency of their consumption (by fishermen); and 3.- to determine the nutritional contribution of the different species of fish and shellfish in relation to the form and frequency of consumption. To achieve these, a semi structured questionnaire was used to interview the fishermen living in the above-mentioned communities. It was arranged in three fields: “Socioeconomic profile of the fisherman”, holding eight questions, “General data concerning health”, containing four questions and “Nutritional and Consumption habits”, including twenty-six questions. The interviews were held in their working areas: the shore, the dock and the hold, during two field trips in February and March, 2022. Qualitative information was analysed by the Strauss and Corbin (2002) standards, that is, codifying and comparing to spot patterns and relations. It was by the Bravo criteria (2010) that the nutritional composition of the several species ingested was calculated: the portion (the food helping for a person), its nutritional value (the amount of macronutrients per helping) and the net weigh (the edible food bit). To conclude, the nutritional qualities (energy, total fat, carbohydrates, proteins and vitamins) of the products coming from the fishing described by the Spanish Aquaculture Observatory (Centro Técnico Nacional de Conservación de Productos de la Pesca y Acuacultura, 2012).

All in all, it was 498 questionnaires considered, all the samples devoted to commercial fishing, having a male age scope between 18 and 78 and a female scope between 26 and 53. It was found fishermen consume all the species they capture; the three predominant species are grouper, blonde and canané. The frequency of consumption of fish is from 2 to 4 days a week and of shellfish is from 1 to 2 days a week. Marine resources are their main source of animal protein: for each 100 g of protein, fish contribute between 14.5 and 24.7 g and shellfish between 14.9 and 20.3 g. Based on the information collected in the study sample, the characteristics and factors associated with fish and seafood consumption were analyzed, and the average protein content was determined. The most-consumed species with the highest protein content are greater amberjack and sea snail, and the species having a lower protein content are jolthead porgy and octopus. Abundant healthy fats are mainly present in pompano and shrimp; these species also stand out for their fat-soluble and water-soluble vitamin content.

Fishermen have a diverse diet by the consumption of both eggs and meat, not due to the nutritional value they provide but, their varied taste. There is not much chance for the intake of livestock in many of the evaluated communities. The market days devoted to selling this meat depend on the slaughter dates and the chances of its transportation. Fishermen also argued bovine meat price is high, having in the intake of chicken and pork the opportunity to have a more varied diet. It is in fishing where the population with lower income finds enough animal protein levels, bearing in mind the outstanding lack of information concerning the nutritional value regarding some local fish consumption.

Palavras-chave : Coastal Fishermen; Protein Content; Health Geography; Fish; Seafood.

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