Dive Brief:
- While seafood was the only fresh department to see a year-over-year sales decrease in 2024, the frequent seafood shopper is a “highly desirable” customer base that poses a growth opportunity for food retailers, according to FMI — The Food Industry Association’s latest Power of Seafood report.
- The number of frequent seafood shoppers has grown in the last five years to 32% of consumers. This cohort is known to shop more frequently, has higher incomes and create baskets two times larger when purchasing seafood, FMI reported.
- Grocers should work on converting more customers into “occasional or frequent” seafood shoppers by breaking down perceptions that seafood is too expensive or complicated to prepare as well as educating consumers on the health benefits, Rick Stein, vice president of fresh foods at FMI, said in a statement.
Dive Insight:
Despite the price of seafood dropping last year, shoppers still view products in this category as a “luxury or indulgence” purchase, according to FMI. Most people in the U.S. who are reducing their seafood consumption frequency state it is due to inflation or prices overall (37%), the price of seafood compared to other proteins (30%), prices per pound (26%) and total package/purchase price (16%), the trade firm noted.
However, 81% of surveyed frequent seafood shoppers agree that the seafood they purchase is affordable.
Frequent seafood shoppers are primarily viewed as affluent and educated consumers with an average household income of $100,000 per year. Seafood consumers are “big spenders,” according to FMI, spending more on groceries ($225 per week) compared to non-seafood consumers ($158 per week), making them a valuable customer base for grocers.
While wealthier consumers make up the majority of seafood buyers, their reasons for purchasing seafood can resonate across income demographics. Frequent seafood shoppers’ “strong positive perceptions” of seafood stem from linking health benefits, easy preparation, affordability and sustainability to seafood, per the report — and grocers have an opportunity to shift messaging around their seafood offerings to highlight these benefits across customer cohorts.
Customers are interested in learning new ways to cook seafood, and grocers can offer recipes that underscore convenience and easy preparation. Food retailers should lean into shoppers’ desire to plan purchases and meals by offering tools and assistance, which can range from in-store signage and packaging to digital platforms, according to the report.
Just 44% of seafood consumers have purchased seafood online, and while this is an increase compared to previous years, it underscores the slow adoption of this buying method, the report found. FMI encourages grocers to promote seafood as an option online to capture a greater share of customer spending, noting that digital platforms serve as an “excellent communication channel to reach seafood consumers.”
These methods would also boost store loyalty as most seafood shoppers shop around for seafood, rather than rely on their primary grocery store for these items, FMI reported.
While supermarkets still reign as consumers’ primary seafood store, they have lost ground to other retailers since 2020.
Seafood counters have also proven impactful in highlighting quality in the department, per the report. Among shoppers whose primary grocery store does not have a seafood counter, around two-thirds said they would like their supermarket to have one.
