Supermarket Perimeter - April 2021 - 58

Seafood: The power of seafood

HEALTHIER EATING TOP DRIVER

44%

want more variety

and flavor it, and they're looking for information from a
variety of sources, including recipe web sites and apps,
friends and family, social media and their grocery store's
seafood department.
" Many have been seeking information during the
pandemic, as most (72%) have experimented with new and
different ways to prepare seafood, " according to FMI. " Many of
these consumers have learned new seafood cooking skills
that they will carry forward and will impact their future
seafood consumption choices. "
Meal kits continue to grow in popularity during the
pandemic and serve as a great opportunity to expose
consumers to different ways to prepare seafood. Among
seafood consumers, almost half (49%) bought a meal kit
in 2020, up from 32% in 2019, and many of those kits have
included seafood.

40%

this increase being the desire to eat healthier (59%). The
pandemic has impacted eating and cooking habits as
want more protien
some cite their reason for eating more seafood being the
desire for more variety in their diet.
Another impact of the pandemic has been restaurants
being closed and that has driven some of these seafood
consumers to cook seafood at home they usually buy at a
restaurant (30%). The pandemic has also impacted the value
equation for seafood, as some of these consumers also
noted the price of seafood often being surprisingly better
than that of many meats.
cite value
Some seafood shoppers (21%) have been shopping at
different stores for seafood than those they shopped at
before the pandemic, but 79% have maintained their same
stores for their seafood purchases. Price, product and service are
key drivers of seafood store choice. Seafood shoppers shop
around at a wide variety of stores beyond their primary
Health, variety, value
seafood store, including seafood specific stores, other
The biggest driver of greater seafood sales at retail during
supermarkets, club stores, supercenters, farmers markets,
say other proteins
COVID has been the desire to eat healthier, with 59% of
online merchants, seafood markets, etc. As shoppers have
out of stock
seafood eaters citing it as their top reason.
flocked to online shopping, the movement has been even
Other top reasons include the need for more variety in
stronger with occasional and particularly frequent online
their diet (44%), eating more protein in general (40%) and " being
shopping. The vast majority of online shoppers are shopping
bored and looking for different things to eat " (24%).
for groceries online, and now, increasingly, many are also shopping
The sense of getting a good value has also led to more seafood sales.
for seafood online.
Some consumers noted the favorable price for seafood compared
Online has been an effective way to communicate with seafood
to other proteins (27%) or other proteins like meat and poultry have
shoppers, but online is growing in its effectiveness for selling seafood.
not been available or out-of-stock (17%). Many shoppers are eating
Shoppers are also shopping around online and they are buying fresh
more seafood during the pandemic (30%) with the biggest driver of
and frozen seafood with a variety of species in their shopping baskets.

27%

58 - APRIL 2021

supermarketperimeter.com

KONDOR83 - STOCK.ADOBE.COM

17%
http://www.supermarketperimeter.com
Supermarket Perimeter - April 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Supermarket Perimeter - April 2021
