RESEARCH gathered by The Knowledge Bank deep dives into the effects inflation has had on the seafood market across the UK’s retail sector.
Seafood is a key staple of the diets of British people and many species from British waters, such as Scottish salmon, scallops, mussles and langoustines, are known for their quality globally.
However, the seafood market has been impacted by inflation and a resulting decline in volume sales.
Carol Saunders, head of insights at The Knowledge Bank, said: “Our research indicates that, while the seafood market has been suffering from the effects of inflation, there are positive signs it remains resilient despite the challenges.
“Affordable alternatives have come to the fore, while discounters and brands have seen successes in certain markets.
“The challenge for companies now is to engage with the younger demographic, capitalising on snacking culture to develop new seafood products that harness the potential of this growing market.”
Despite the economic challenges, frozen fish sales have seen a 15.6% increase in sales value and a 41.7% growth in volume (kg) sales as consumers look for affordable options.
Cod, pollock and prawns make up more than half of these sales UK-wide, while frozen haddock and scampi remain popular in Scotland.
Nearly 50% of all fresh fish sales across Britain comes from salmon and 75% of shoppers say they are more likely to buy it if it’s labelled as being from Scotland. This makes salmon the food product most synonymous with Scotland.
However, salmon does remain the most expensive fresh fish species in Britain. With prices at £19.64 per kg, and a 14.1% increase year on year, volume sales of the seafood has taken a hit.
In terms of shellfish, scallops have experienced deflation, which has resulted in a sales growth of 6.4% anda 27.5% increase in volume sales in Scotland.
CEO of Seafood Scotland, Donna Fordyce, said: “While challenges remain, it is clear there are pockets of opportunity for producers, particularly with younger consumers.
“Indeed, our current campaign to introduce school children to tasty seafood dishes is designed to address this opportunity, inspiring young people and their families to try simple recipes at home.
“Innovation will prove key going forward, while harnessing the market potential of younger consumers could be vital in changing attitudes towards seafood products in the future.”
