Seafood Direct
I have been fascinated by a problem in the US seafood market where we export a majority of our seafood produced and import a majority of the seafood consumed–it seems backwards. As someone who grew up around fishing and aquaculture, it seems like a waste of energy, food, and money that could go more directly to fisherman.
I have spent some time thinking about possible solutions for this problem, one of which I have outlined here. That idea is a platform (web app and mobile app) that connects stores and consumers to local fisherman who are producing local seafood. Additionally, the platform would provide education and recipes for how to use local and seasonal seafood, which people are often unfamiliar with. This platform would be for populated areas that are close to fishing and aquaculture.
Why local and seasonal seafood?
Currently, the United States is one of the largest seafood markets in the world, producing about $11 billion dollars worth of seafood each year (Fisheries, NOAA). Half of that value is exported. A large portion of imported seafood is caught by American fishermen, exported overseas for processing, and then reimported to the United States.
The seafood produced in the United States has good value in the global market because it is produced with high quality standards and regulations. However, the consumer behavior in the United states is as supportive of a sustainable seafood market as it could be. Consumer behavior and education about local seafood availability is important and there is opportunity to grow local consumer demand for locally caught seafood in coastal cities and towns.
The retail market makes up the majority of seafood sales by volume, and the food service makes up the majority by value (Love et al. Sept. 2022).
“Seafood has a nutritional profile that can be beneficial to human health, which gives it a role to play in healthy diets. In addition, because its production and harvesting can have fewer environmental impacts than some forms of animal protein, it can contribute to sustainable diets. However, the positive health and environmental outcomes are not guaranteed—they depend on how seafood is prepared and served and whether it is sourced from sustainable fisheries and aquaculture industries.”(Love at al. 2021)
Generally, fresh fish has the highest price point, “and it is therefore the product form of choice for producers that have more control over the production process” (Love et al. 2022). Fisheries that are able to expand harvest season can increase revenue, but this still depends on consumer demand. Fishery revenue depends largely on how well harvest can be aligned with consumption patterns.
Shifting consumption patterns of American fish consumers has the ability to shift local fishery revenue to be more sustainable and support low impact fishing practices.
What is the target consumer/ purveyer?
The target audience for a direct to consumer seafood distribution model would be consumers in coastal cities and towns. Targeting home cooks, private chefs and restaurants would be critical for product research. Specifically targeting those who want to eat more fish and are looking for more information about the best seafood to buy and how to easily prepare it. Providing an easy way for people to access seasonal seafood could boost seasonal seafood demand which could help align demand with supply in local fishing communities. As Love et al. says…
“Educating consumers about seasonality in local wild caught seafood is recommended as
well as increasing the connections between consumers and harvesters through direct
marketing efforts” (Love et al. Sept. 2022)
The image below left shows retail seafood sales of top 15 species, 2020–2021, in nominal (not adjusted for inflation) terms, given the relatively low rates of inflation over the study period (Sun et al.) What is important about this is that, “domestic aquaculture production is the primary source for catfish, clams, oysters, and crawfish/crayfish, whereas shrimp, salmon, and tilapia are primarily imported into the United States” (Sun et al.). The figure below right shows seafood sales by major US city, it is worth noting that the top cities are all in coastal regions where local seafood is produced.
The Context for this Product
As I have mentioned, the US has one of the largest seafood markets in the world. However, NOAA Fisheries estimates that between 70 and 85 percent of seafood consumed in the U.S. is imported. We further estimate that about half of this imported seafood is from aquaculture. (The Global Picture). The consumer demand for local sustainable fish is not prominent because consumers expect a year round supply of seafood at supermarkets. In fact, “demand is strongest during winter and Lent, periods when domestic seasonal supply is low”(Love et al. Sept. 2022). The most popular seafood products in the United States, such as imported salmon, and shrimp, and Tilapia, maintain a consistent year round supply.
Seafood waste is also a prominent issue with seafood markets. In a 2015 study, researchers estimate that 40–47% of the edible U.S. seafood supply went uneaten between 2009 and 2013 (Love et al. 2015). 51-63% of this loss was attributed to consumers, in and out of the home, 16–32% attributed to bycatch discarded by commercial fishermen, and 13–16% attributed to distribution and retail operations. It should be noted that some portion of seafood loss is expected, as certain bycatch is not safe for human consumption. However, the magnitude of this waste should not be understated.
Fresh seafood is a preferable market for consumers and for fishermen and it requires the least processing. “Fresh seafood is important, as it makes up 43% of sales revenue for fisheries in the United States. Moreover, some species are almost exclusively sold fresh, with trout and lobster as prime examples. Fresh also includes the greatest diversity of species and, as such, is the most likely product form for new producers to succeed” (Love et al. Apr. 2022). However, fresh seafood cannot travel well, is not easily transportable, and expires quickly. This leaves the market for fresh seafood with room to grow locally where the seafood is caught.
The Goals for this Product
The goal is to educate consumers and create a shift in consumer demand to better align with seasonal seafood and local seafood catch. This would support low impact aquaculture and wild fishing. “Seasonal timing of landings patterns and linkages to consumption patterns can have a potentially strong impact on income for coastal communities as well as import patterns” (Love et al.2022) This would also provide better pricing for local fishermen and decrease seafood waste as discussed on page 3.
It is important to educate consumers about the seasonal seafood catch and the benefits of eating local seafood, as well as provide a lower price point for quality local seafood. Educating consumers about seafood preparation for different varieties of seafood is important to sustaining a consumer demand for local seafood.
The goal is not to completely replace imported seafood demand in coastal markets but rather to make the domestic supply aligned with domestic demand for more species of fish. “Domestic supply is aligned with periods of high demand for relatively few species, this suggests that domestic fishers miss opportunities to meet consumer demand with associated detrimental impacts for coastal communities” (Love et al. 2022).
UX Product Presentation Claire Maurer.pdfUX Product Presentation
Seafood UI .pdfUI Product Prototype
References
Fisheries, NOAA. “U.S. Inspected Seafood and the Global Market | NOAA Fisheries.” NOAA,
May 17, 2022. International.
https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/international/international-affairs/us-inspected-seafood-an
D-global-market.
Love, David, Catherine Turvey, Jamie Harding, Ruth Young, Rebecca Ramsig, Michael Thlusty,
Jillian Fry, et al. “Nutrition and Origin of United States Chain Restaurant Seafood.”
1546–1555, June 2021. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqaa437.
Love, David C., Frank Asche, Jessica A. Gephart, Jiafeng Zhu, Taryn Garlock, Joshua S. Stoll,
James Anderson, et al. “Identifying Opportunities for Aligning Production and
Consumption in the U.S. Fisheries by Considering Seasonality.” Reviews in Fisheries
Science & Aquaculture 0, no. 0 (September 16, 2022): 1–15.
https://doi.org/10.1080/23308249.2022.2121601.
Love, David C., Frank Asche, Ruth Young, Elizabeth M. Nussbaumer, James L. Anderson,
Robert Botta, Zach Conrad, et al. “An Overview of Retail Sales of Seafood in the USA,
2017–2019.” Reviews in Fisheries Science & Aquaculture 30, no. 2 (April 3,
2022): 259–70. https://doi.org/10.1080/23308249.2021.1946481.
Love, David, Jillian Fry, Mike Milli, and Roni Neff. “Wasted Seafood in the United States:
Quantifying Loss from Production to Consumption and Moving toward Solutions.”
Center for a Livable Future. Accessed September 22, 2022.
https://clf.jhsph.edu/publications/wasted-seafood-united-states-quantifying-loss-productio
N-consumption-and-moving-toward.
Shamshak, Gina, James Anderson, Frank Asche, Taryn Garlock, and David Love. “U.S. Seafood
Consumption.” World Aquaculture Society, April 24, 2019.
https://doi.org/10.1111/jwas.12619.
Sun, Lianqun, Carole Engle, Ganesh Kumar, and Jonathan van Senten. “Retail Market Trends for
Seafood in the United States.” Journal of the World Aquaculture Society n/a, no. n/a.
Accessed September 25, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1111/jwas.12919.
“The Global Picture | FishWatch.” Accessed September 22, 2022.
https://www.fishwatch.gov/sustainable-seafood/the-global-picture.