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430 V. Borsellino et al.

(i.e. minus the ship-owner’s out-of-pocket expenses—fuel, ice, crates, repair and mainte-
nance of nets and equipment, etc.) into two parts, one for the ship-owner and the other one
for the crew (which in turn is divided into further levels according to the crew member’s
responsibilities).

In order to establish salary levels, the ship-owner is always assumed to be on board, therefore,
as well as the amount that he obtains as the owner of the vessel, he receives a further amount
for the role he plays as a crew member. This amount is not included in ‘salaries’ but falls under
net income. The highest labour costs are found in purse seining (¤113 378 per vessel), which
has a larger crew, gradually decreasing to zero in the case of small-scale fishing—where there
is only one fisherman on board, who is the owner (so payment for his work on board falls
under net income).

Detracting sundry expenses and maintenance and depreciation costs from the revenue, the
actual wealth generated by the company can be calculated, or rather its value added before
taxation.

The net income is that part of the balance sheet which shows the remuneration for productive
elements in their entirety, as supplied by the actual entrepreneur (the ship-owner).

In this analysis, the net income (calculated before tax) was obtained by subtracting sundry
expenses, maintenance and depreciation costs, and labour cost from the revenue. In conclusion,
it represents remuneration for the work of management and for the ship-owner’s work on board,
and a return on the capital investment and entrepreneurial activity. The highest profits are those
made by the trawling fleet in Mazara (¤58 386 per vessel), followed by long-liners (¤50 822
per vessel) and purse seining (¤49 694 per vessel). Lower profits, (accompanied, however, by
lower variability indices) are made by the trawling companies in Porto Empedocle (¤36 471 per
vessel) followed by the mid-water pair trawls and trawlers from Sciacca (respectively ¤34 643
per vessel and ¤32 812 per vessel), and lastly, the small-scale fishing companies (¤12 199 per
vessel).

4.4 Economic productivity

The economic efficiency of the companies examined was measured using indicators of eco-
nomic productivity construed as the relationship between given parameters from the balance
sheet and the tonnage used (see table 14). From this analysis, small-scale fishing registers the
highest unitary figures per unit for all the indicators. This shows the high level of productive
efficiency in very small vessels compared with those of high tonnage. The lowest indicators
of ‘Revenue/GT’ and ‘Value added/GT’ are not those of the large fishing vessels in Mazara,
but those of the long-liners in Marsala (with ¤1907 and ¤1212). In terms of net income per
unit, the indicator figures seem to come into alignment for all fishing methods, except for that
of small-scale fishing (from ¤459 for the trawlers in Mazara to ¤1010 for the mid-water pair
trawls in Sciacca).

Considering the average daily economic parameters per gross tonnage employed in the
various fishing methods in consideration (see table 15), the gap between small-scale fishing
and other methods widens. Small-scale fishing boats, apart from being very small indeed, go
to sea for just a few days, marking up a high daily revenue per gross tonnage (¤108.86).

The unitary profitability of mid-water pair trawlers is the highest after small-scale fishing.
Purse seining, practised by larger boats and for few days (135 d per vessel), also registers a
high daily revenue per gross tonnage utilized (¤22.91), but in terms of net income, it falls into
line with the figures recorded for the trawlers of Porto Empedocle and Sciacca (between ¤4.70
and ¤4.21). The lowest indicators were found in the long-lining sector, especially in terms of
revenue, and in trawling in Mazara, in terms of value added and net income.