Seafood, whether ambient, fresh or frozen, has seen above average gains throughout the pandemic. While initially people may have switched over due to out-of-stocks in meat and poultry, seafood quickly became a powerful area of growth in its own right. 210 Analytics analyzed performance data provided by IRI.

Total Store Sales
Sales of all food and beverage related items remained elevated from January’s strong increase of +12.0%. February sales increased 11.8% over the weeks ending February 3^rd through February 28^th versus the same weeks in 2020. Both months are up significantly from a subdued December (+8.1%). As seen all throughout the pandemic, the frozen foods department is an above-average performer, whereas the fresh perimeter, which includes meat, produce, bakery, deli and seafood, has trended slightly below average. Meat and seafood have been top performers, but lower growth in produce, deli and bakery has pulled down the fresh perimeter average overall.

Ambient, Fresh and Frozen Seafood
Seafood did well in areas of the store in February 2021, which includes the four weeks ending February 28. Pre-pandemic, frozen and fresh seafood (fresh comprised of fixed and random weight items commonly merchandised in the perimeter department versus freezer doors) were very similar in size, with shelf-stable about one-third the size of frozen. However, the strength of frozen seafood since the onset of COVID-19 in the U.S. has pushed frozen seafood sales to the top position, followed by fresh and shelf-stable. High growth rates for fresh and frozen continue in February, picking up where 2020 left off.

Source: IRI, Integrated Fresh, Total US, MULO, % change vs. year ago.

For fresh and frozen seafood, this means 11 months of double-digit gains versus year ago in dollar sales. Shelf-stable seafood has somewhat trended back to normal but remains above year-ago levels in February.

Fresh Seafood
Within fresh seafood, shellfish was the fastest growth area in February 2021, at 39.8% over year ago levels. Volume gains tracked about 10 percentage points behind, at +29.2% — indicating inflationary conditions.

Source: IRI, Integrated Fresh, Total US, MULO, % change vs. year ago.

Shellfish has consistently outgrown finfish, with the highest gains in the second quarter of 2020.

Retailers are investing in a broader fresh seafood assortment. The average number of items per week per store increased from 53.8 in February 2020 to 55.5 in February 2021. The increase is about one extra SKU in finfish and one in shell fish. In contrast, average item count in the meat department continues to be down relative to pre-pandemic.  

   Source: IRI, Integrated Fresh Total US, MULO, average weekly items per store selling

Salmon — The Pandemic Powerhouse
Salmon is, by far, the biggest seller within fresh seafood, with February sales of $185 million. With many Valentine’s Day dinners being at-home occasions in 2021, the premium categories, including crab and lobster, did extremely well. “Premiumization is a trend we see in non-holiday weeks as well, benefitting seafood, as nearly a year of lockdown has brought on meal fatigue for many home chefs. Seafood has acquired new buyers and more frequent purchases from those who’d dabbled in seafood previously. This spells exciting things for these categories in the future,” said Jonna Parker, team lead, IRI Fresh. All top 10 fresh seafood types ranked by sales grew in February 2021 versus year ago.

   Source: IRI, Integrated Fresh Total US, MULO, % increase in $ growth versus year ago

Frozen Seafood Sales
Frozen seafood has been a sales growth leader in the frozen food space. Frozen seafood had a 36.1% increase in dollar sales in February 2021 versus year ago. This was the highest gain across all areas. Frozen seafood has benefited from increased household penetration, increased trips and an increased spend per trip during the pandemic.

Source: IRI, Integrated Fresh, Total US, MULO, 1 week view % change vs. year ago.

By cut, frozen fish was the largest category in February, at $291 million, yet up nearly 30%. The second-largest segment, frozen raw shrimp, was up the most, at +57.4% versus year ago. Raw shrimp have been the fastest growth area since the third-quarter of 2020.

Source: IRI, Integrated Fresh, Total US, MULO, 1 week view % change vs. year ago.

What’s Next?
Since the onset of coronavirus, seafood sales regardless of temperature zone have been highly elevated. IRI Research found that the less consumers move around, the more it favors frozen foods — which explains the strength in frozen. There are some signs that consumer mobility is starting to increase. Rising gasoline sales, increasing OpenTable reservations, higher TSA checkpoint numbers, the re-opening of schools and other indicators are pointing to people moving around more to go to school, work, out to dinner, vacation or visit family and friends. Increased mobility is also likely to result in a switch from home-centric food spending to greater foodservice engagement, but may also drive increased demand for time-saving, convenience focused solutions in the frozen food department.

With an early Easter, on April 4, March is likely going to see a spike in holiday-related sales. While during ordinary times this favors Easter classics, such as lamb, the smaller gatherings makes upcoming holidays an excellent opportunity for fresh seafood as well, beyond the typical spike in Lent sales.

Source: 210 Analytics/IRI