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Consumers seeking healthy alternatives to more ‘everyday’ proteins drive a whopping 50.6% increase in frozen sales.

It took a pandemic – along with temporary shortages of certain other proteins – to drive more shoppers to frozen and refrigerated seafood entrees and apps. But once they tried them, they were hooked (pardon the pun).

SeaPak taps an on-trend flavor profile with its new BAP-certified Everything Bagel Butterfly Shrimp with cream cheese chive dipping sauce.

As a result, the category has posted record gains in the past few months. During the 12 weeks ended Aug. 9, sales soared 50.6% to $1.70 billion compared with the same year-earlier period, reports Chicago- based market research firm IRI (iriworldwide.com). Shrimp sales shot up 53.3% to $942.99 million while fish/seafood sales jumped 47.4% to $760.18 million. Refrigerated seafood sales grew at a similar pace, surging 32.3% to $202.43 million.

“The pandemic created a lot of trial. And there are a lot of good seafood products out there at a reasonable cost versus other proteins,” says Michael Rhoads, director of sales at Lakeland, Fla.-based Tampa Maid Foods (tampamaid.com), maker of the Margaritaville lineup. As more shoppers seek foods to improve their health and prevent disease, Rhoads expects seafood sales will continue to climb, especially during the upcoming holidays when consumers will be entertaining at home instead of going out.

“Frozen seafood has been leading growth in the frozen food aisle for months now,” confirms Anne-Marie Roerink, principal at San Antonio, Texas-based 210 Analytics (210analytics.com).

“When the meat supply was scarce, we saw people starting to shift to seafood. Additionally, some consumers want more protein variety now that they are cooking more of their meals at home versus eating out.” She, too, expects “many more months” of highly-elevated frozen seafood sales as consumers continue to stock up on all types of frozen food. Plus, the category’s many kid-friendly offerings appeal to parents whose children are attending online school at home. Similarly, adults working from home can easily pop a seafood entree in the microwave for themselves.

Same story in the refrigerated category, says Lou Shaheen, vp of sales and marketing at Bellingham, Wash.-based Trans- Ocean Products (trans-ocean.com), which has seen sales of its surimi products (Crab Classic, Simply Surimi and Seafood Snackers) jump at least 35% since the start of the pandemic. In fact, he reports, some large retailers, including club stores, have seen gains of 100%. Trans-Ocean offers inexpensive, pasteurized seafood in a nice package that’s readily available – and it’s convenient, says Shaheen. So it’s a winner for both consumers and retailers.

NEW ENTREES BUILD EXCITEMENT IN CATEGORY

While the start of the pandemic saw many frozen seafood suppliers focused on keeping stores stocked with current offerings, many have returned to rolling out innovative SKUs to keep new seafood customers engaged in the category.

For example, although the Margaritaville brand is known mostly for its shrimp, the company recently debuted Stuffed Flounder (individually Wrapped flounder fillets filled with crabmeat) and LandShark Beer Battered Cod (cod fillets dipped in a beer batter). “As consumers are eating more meals at home these days, flavour fatigue and boredom are setting in. Busy moms are struggling to serve something new and different,” says director of marketing Jenny Doan, referring to Margaritavile’s primary demographic: women 35 and older with children. “These new value-added fish offerings are ‘restaurant quality,’ simple to prepare, and versatile,” checking all of a busy mom’s boxes, she adds.

Demand for Margaritaville’s shrimp and fish items have surged as well as consumers trade out restaurant trips for eating at home, says Doan. “By providing elevated flavors and unique and differentiated offerings from a brand that is associated with fun, our sales have certainly benefitted during these challenging times.”

Another unique entry in the value-added seafood category is Everything Bagel Butterfly Shrimp from St. Simons Island, Ga.-based SeaPak Shrimp & Seafood Co. (seapak.com). Each 12-ounce package includes 9 ounces of 4-star Best Aquaculture Practices-certified butterfly shrimp seasoned with a mix of sesame seeds, salt, poppy seeds, dried garlic and dried onion plus a 3-ounce container of cream cheese chive dipping sauce.

“Everything Bagel flavor/spice is trending heavily and is predicted to continue to grow year-over-year,” says SeaPak’s director of marketing Kristen Beadon. “As consumers continue to stay at home, SeaPak is trying to provide new and exciting flavors that consumers may see at their favorite seafood restaurants.”

Meanwhile, Kvarøy, Norway-based Kvarøy Arctic (kvaroyarctic.com) recently launched a line of Salmon Hot Dogs and Salmon Burgers, already available at Whole Foods Market and a handful of other retailers. Made with sustainable Atlantic salmon raised in Kvarøy’s ocean net pen farms in Norway, the Salmon Hot Dogs deliver “the taste and texture of a classic American hot dog with the nutrition of salmon,” says Kvarøy strategic development consultant Jennifer Bushman. Both the hot dogs and burgers are available in Original Recipe, Original & Cheese, Jalapeno & Cheese, and Chile & Cheese flavors.

The poke trend is also making its way to the frozen seafood section, thanks to two new poke meal kits from Kent, Wash.- based Annasea Foods Group (annasea.com). Its 10-ounce California Roll Ahi Poke and Sweet Chili Tofu Poke offer “a new way for customers to easily make poke at home using traditional poke recipe sauce packets with either premium, sustainable, traceable Ahi tuna and imitation crab or Japanese-style deep fried tofu,” reports the company.

PLANT-BASED SEAFOOD PRODUCTS FLOURISH

As consumers shift to eating more plant-based foods – both before and during the pandemic – additional plant-based seafood options are coming to market. Gwynn’s Island, Va.-based The Plant Based Seafood Co. (plantbasedseafoodco.com) recently launched several plant-based products under its Mind Blown brand, including Dusted Shrimp, Naked Shrimp, Crab-like Crab Cakes, Crunchy Coconut Shrimp, and its latest offering: Dusted Bay Scallops, lightly coated with a gluten-free Old Bay mixture.

“We have done extensive consumer blind taste testing, and scallop lovers cannot tell our plant-based scallops are made with plants,” says company co-founder and CEO Monica Van Cleve-Talbert, of the new addition.

Next, she says, Plant Based Seafood Co. plans to launch Spicy Bang Bang Shrimp; it’s also developing plant-based lobster tails and lobster bites.

Meanwhile, New York City-based Gathered Foods, maker of Good Catch Foods (goodcatchfoods.com) plant-based seafood products, recently rolled out a line of frozen seafood entrees and appetizers, including New England Style Plant-Based Crab Cakes, Thai Style Plant-Based Fish Cakes, and Classic Style Plant-Based Fish Burgers.

“Ultimately, consumers simply want an enjoyable culinary experience, from ease of preparation to delightful taste,” says Gathered Foods co-founder and CEO Chris Kerr. “This creates an opportunity for Good Catch to be a trail blazer in developing plant-based seafood that can be a one-to-one swap in traditional recipes.”

HOW TO BOOST IN-STORE SEAFOOD SALES

While pandemic shoppers are certainly buying frozen and refrigerated seafood more than ever before, new research suggests retailers are missing opportunities to attract infrequent seafood buyers to the category.

Just 25% of shoppers are classified as frequent seafood consumers or are eating seafood at least two times per week as recommended by the USDA, according to the Food Marketing Institute’s (fmi.org) The Power of Seafood 2020 report. Another third of shoppers (32%) are considered occasional seafood consumers (eating seafood at least once a month).

“This means that 43% of adults are not even occasional seafood consumers. That is, these non-seafood consumers eat seafood less than once a month, rarely or never,” says FMI. As a result, “There exists great potential to not only increase the household penetration of seafood among consumers, but also the frequency of consumption,” according to the report.

To overcome knowledge barriers and preparation fears of infrequent seafood shoppers, retailers can direct them to other seafood options beyond the fresh seafood counter. For example, a majority (70%) of infrequent seafood shoppers are somewhat or very likely to buy processed or value-added fish sticks or crab cakes.

“Another way these infrequent seafood consumers are open to trying seafood is through their grocery store’s foodservice offerings, be it partially or fully prepared seafood (53%),” says FMI. In addition, one-third of infrequent seafood consumers (33%) said they would buy seafood if it was included as part of a meal kit. “All of these are viable options that food retailers should consider to expand and grow the number of seafood consumers,” says FMI.

Given the perception that seafood is expensive, price is also a major motivator. In fact, 81% of infrequent seafood consumers say a good sale or price might prompt them to buy. Of the remaining top 10 trial drivers, seven are retailer-driven, from sampling (75%) and in-store cooking demos (59%) to in-store recipes (56%) and recommendations from the seafood department (53%).

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