Only 53 percent of the households contacted in California bought 

 fresh fish as compared to 61; percent in Oregon and 69 percent in Washington. 

 Among the households buying some kind of fish, 91 percent purchased fresh 

 fish in Oregon and Washington as coinpared to only 72 percent in California. 

 The adverse picttire as shovn by the figures for California is largely a 

 reflection of very low fish consunptlon in the southern coast area, include 

 ing the Los Angeles metropolitan area (Area Hj see figure 2), Only U8 per- 

 cent of the households in Area U purchased fresh fish as compared with 

 nearly 70 percent in Area I, the remainder of the coastal area extending 

 ft*om Monterey to the Canadian border* 



Pbr the three states only about 33 percent of the households 

 purchased salmon and halibut, the two most popiilar fresh fish* Only 19 per- 

 cent purchased rockflshes, and 22 percent crab* 



The consumption of fresh fish was found to be directly related to 

 income and by several factors associated vlth income, such as oociq>ation and 

 education. Ihe effect of income as a favorable factor in increasing con- 

 sumption vas considerably greater on the more expensive fish and shellfish 

 such as crab and salmon than on sole and rockflshes* 



One of the significant facts broijght out by the study vas the 

 relationship of prior residence of respondents and their consumption of fresh 

 fish. A high percentage of the consxmers on the West Coast fonnerly lived in 

 the North Central, South Central, and the Mountain States where fresh fish 

 are not always readily available* About one- half of the former residents 

 firan these area« purchsised fresh fish, as compared to about 6$ percent of 

 the native population. The percentage of households pvirchaslng fresh fish 

 increases rather sharply during the first few ysars of residence on the coast, 

 but then levels off. Additional time in the State, therefore, only partly 

 replaces formal promotional and educational programs as a stimulTis to fuz*ther 

 increases in the level of l^e fresh fish p\n:chasing rate* 



The study supports the thesis that food consvimption habits are 

 slow to change. TKLess influenced by advertising and education, the tenden- 

 cy is to continue eating those foods to which one is accustomed. So far 

 very little fish promotion or educational work has been undertaken on the 

 West Coast. The opportunHy to increase fish sales through advertising and 

 educational programs appears to be rather promising, particularly in south- 

 ern California where ^sh consumption is now very low* 



Among Protestants and Catholics, the groups accounting for the 

 major proportion of the households in the study, there was little difference 

 in the percentage buying fresh fish or frozen packaged fish. However, the 

 Catholic households purchased fish much more frequently than did their Prot- 

 estant counterparts. A very high percentage of the Jewish people reported 

 the purchase of fresh fish, irtiile a very low percentage pinrchased frozen 

 packaged fish. The higher proportion of Protestant households on the West 

 Coast as compared, with the population composition of some of the North At- 

 lantic States undoubtedly is an important factor in accoTinting for the rel- 

 atively low fish consumption in the Pacific States Area* 



