Factors Affecting the Pattern of Fisheries Products Consumption among households of Shiraz City

The current study was conducted to identify the factors affecting the consumption of fishery products by households in Shiraz. All households of Shiraz city were the research population which 381 of them were randomly selected using simple random sampling method. The face validity and reliability of the questionnaire were confirmed by a pilot study among 30 households of Neyriz Fars, respectively (Cronbach's alpha coefficients were computed between 0.62 and 0.83). The results of path analysis indicated that the households` income, the education level of the households` head, hygiene issues and awareness of fisheries products` benefits had a direct, positive and significant effect on the amount of fisheries products consumption by households. Also, the households’ income and hygiene issues had an indirect and positive effect on household attitudes toward fisheries products and then on the amount of consumption of these products through the mediator variables of awareness of fisheries products` benefits, sensory indicators and preference to buy from the direct market of fisheries. Moreover, the direct effect of awareness of the fisheries products` benefits, it had also an indirect and positive effect on the amount of fisheries products consumption by households through the mediator variables of market preference and attitudes toward fisheries products consumption. Finally, the study suggested that the media could play an effective role on modifying the households` attitude toward fisheries products consumption by educating different types of fish cooking methods as well as improving their awareness regarding the fisheries products` benefits.