ANALYSIS OF SCANNER DATA ON SEAFOOD PRODUCTS IN THE UNITED STATES: REVIEW OF RECENT STUDIES AND IMPLICATIONS FOR AQUACULTURE/FISHERIES INDUSTRY

The United States (U.S.) is a major net importer of seafood, and its demand for imported seafood has continued to grow over time. Seafood retailing in the U.S. is carried out via two chief outlets: restaurants and grocery stores. The recent availability of commercial scanner data allows significant advances in understanding seafood grocery sector in the U.S. A number of recent studies used store-based as well as household-based scanner data from the Nielsen Company, and analyzed market trends and estimated demand and hedonic price models for various seafood products in the United States. This article reviews recent studies that used Nielsen scanner data, and provides some implications for global aquaculture and fisheries industry.  

The number of seafood species sold in the U.S. markets has shrunk over the last five years. On average, the top-10 species accounted for approximately 94 percent of all the seafood sold in individual metro markets. Not all the species in the top-10 list were able to maintain their position in the markets. Over the last 5 years, only 20 percent of the total products launched in the markets lasted for more than 4 years. Tilapia continued to maintain its strong position in the U.S. markets for the past 5 years. While mixed results were observed for salmon. Swai is another seafood commodity that has shown a steady improvement in market share.   

Estimated hedonic models reveal that the implicit price of form is species and market specific. Results indicate that consumers are willing to pay higher prices for private brands relative to national brands and that small package size (below 16oz = 4 servings) carries a price premium. Convenience is also an important attribute valued by costumers. Results show that the responsiveness of seafood demand to changes in its own and substitute product prices vary over seasons and U.S. census divisions. The review reveals that the seafood market environment in the U.S. is market and product specific. The seafood industry needs to develop market specific strategies to gain further market share in retail stores.