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Peer-reviewedCC BYMaritime studies : MAST

Leeches and linchpins: a scoping review of seafood market intermediaries in small-scale fishery supply chains.

  • Sharon K Suri1,2
  • Sahir Advani3,4
4 affiliations
  1. 1Department of Anthropology, Amsterdam Institute for Social Science Research, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
  2. 2Department of Geography, Planning and International Development Studies, Amsterdam Institute for Social Science Research, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
  3. 3Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, University of British, Columbia, Canada.
  4. 4School of Marine Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, USA.
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Abstract

Seafood market intermediaries, often termed middlemen, play a crucial yet contested role in connecting small-scale fisheries (SSF) to global seafood markets. While their influence has long been recognized, scholarly accounts have tended to frame these intermediaries as either exploitative actors who constrain fishers' livelihoods or as essential actors who provide access to markets, finance, and social protection. This scoping review examines how recent literature (2019-2021) normatively frames seafood market intermediaries, and what these framings reveal about scholarly and policy discourses on SSF. Using a qualitative synthesis of peer-reviewed and grey literature, we identify predominant framings that cast these intermediaries as both leeches and linchpins, thereby reinforcing power asymmetries while also buffering fishers against economic and social risks. We discuss how these normative framings shape broader narratives that influence fisheries governance and policy, with implications for equitable outcomes. The paper also demonstrates the value of systematic scoping methods for synthesizing qualitative marine social science research and provides methodological reflections for small research teams. Recognizing the diverse, gendered, and socially embedded roles of intermediaries can inform more just and context-sensitive interventions in SSF seafood supply chains.Supplementary information

The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s40152-026-00516-6.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{suri2026leeches,
  title = {{Leeches and linchpins: a scoping review of seafood market intermediaries in small-scale fishery supply chains.}},
  author = {Sharon K Suri and Sahir Advani},
  journal = {Maritime studies : MAST},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1007/s40152-026-00516-6},
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42903353},
  note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Leeches and linchpins: a scoping review of seafood market intermediaries in small-scale fishery supply chains.
AU  - Sharon K Suri
AU  - Sahir Advani
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/19
JO  - Maritime studies : MAST
DO  - 10.1007/s40152-026-00516-6
UR  - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42903353
AB  - Seafood market intermediaries, often termed middlemen, play a crucial yet contested role in connecting small-scale fisheries (SSF) to global seafood markets. While their influence has long been recognized, scholarly accounts have tended to frame these intermediaries as either exploitative actors who constrain fishers' livelihoods or as essential actors who provide access to markets, finance, and social protection. This scoping review examines how recent literature (2019-2021) normatively frames seafood market intermediaries, and what these framings reveal about scholarly and policy discourses on SSF. Using a qualitative synthesis of peer-reviewed and grey literature, we identify predominant framings that cast these intermediaries as both leeches and linchpins, thereby reinforcing power asymmetries while also buffering fishers against economic and social risks. We discuss how these normative framings shape broader narratives that influence fisheries governance and policy, with implications for equitable outcomes. The paper also demonstrates the value of systematic scoping methods for synthesizing qualitative marine social science research and provides methodological reflections for small research teams. Recognizing the diverse, gendered, and socially embedded roles of intermediaries can inform more just and context-sensitive interventions in SSF seafood supply chains.Supplementary information  The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s40152-026-00516-6.
SN  - 1872-7859
SN  - 2212-9790
ER  -