Table 1. — Regional ranking in at-home consumption of fishery products, and in population. 



' Includes varieties not listed. 



Table 1, where it can be seen that the Middle 

 Atlantic area, which ranks second in popula- 

 tion, is apparently the Nation's leading fish 

 and shellfish market. The area achieved first 

 or second ranking in consumption of four out 

 of seven individual species examined in this 

 analysis, which indicates diversity in tastes. 

 The area's lowest rank — sixth — was in oyster 

 consumption. 



The South Atlantic region ranked just behind 

 the Middle Atlantic in fish and shellfish con- 

 sumption which was consistent with its popu- 

 lation rank. Also, the area ranked first or 

 second in four of the seven species examined. 

 Consumption of oysters in the South Atlantic 

 was especially high relative to other regions. 



The West South Central region, which ranks 

 fifth in population, ranked third in total fish 

 and shellfish consumption. This ranking was 

 influenced by heavy consumption of finfish, 

 which were not specified in the analysis. 



The East North Central region is the Nation's 

 most populous, but ranked only fourth in both 

 finfish and shellfish consumption. The area's 

 rank is especially low in consumption of crabs, 

 lobsters, and clams. However, the area con- 

 stitutes one of the leading markets for oysters 

 and lobster tails. 



The New England area is eighth in popula- 

 tion among the nine U.S. regions. Its rank in 

 finfish and shellfish consumption in the survey 

 was seventh. The area consumed more lobsters 

 than any other single region and was second 

 in total scallop consumption, third in total 

 shellfish consumption, but seventh in total con- 

 sumption of finfish and ninth in oyster con- 

 sumption. 



Among the other four regions, the Pacific 

 ranked highest in overall shellfish and finfish 



consumption. The area was especially strong 

 in crabs, where it ranked first, and in oysters 

 and clams, ranking third in these categories. 

 The South Atlantic States ranked fairly high 

 in consumption of oysters and crabs, but were 

 among the lowest in scallops. The West North 

 Central region and the Mountain region ranked 

 at, or near, the bottom in most categories. The 

 Mountain States comprise the least populous 

 region of the United States and actually con- 

 sume more than their propoi-tional share of 

 seafood products. The West North Central 

 States, however, rank sixth in population, but 

 were ranked eighth or ninth in all categories 

 of consumption covered in the analysis. 



SEASONALITY FACTORS 



Figures 14 and 15 indicate the seasonal 

 changes in consumption for five leading shell- 

 fish species. Not surprisingly, the consumption 

 of oysters closely follows the patterns of the 



r l^-wsotb iverage 



Figure 14. — Monthly index of survey panel consump- 

 tion of oysters, crabs, and clams. 



