Files
Abstract
In this paper, we estimate the indirect economic losses to U.S. shrimp consumers as a result of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Using a combination of national fisheries market data and the results of an experimental auction, we identify three sources of economic damages to shrimp consumers: (1) higher prices paid by consumers for shrimp in 2010, (2) a loss of utility in the form of substituting consumption of preferred wild-caught Gulf shrimp with less-preferred substitutes, and (3) a loss in utility in the form of stigma attached to wild-caught Gulf shrimp.