Supermarket Perimeter - January 2025 - 58

Seafood
Value proposition
By Christine Blank
AS EXPERIENCED IN PREVIOUS YEARS, prepared seafood items
are expected to continue to sell well this year due to shoppers' busy
lifestyles and the desire for healthy, restaurant-style meals.
" One of the top trends in 2025 will be in this space of value added/
grab and go/heat and eat-type seafood offerings, " said Jason Resner,
president at consultancy DNR Sales & Marketing Strategy Advisors.
" Deli prepared foods are an area of growth, in general and for
seafood, " said Anne-Marie Roerink, principal of consulting firm 210
Analytics. " While affordability takes the headlines, consumers are still
pressed for time or just not in the mood to cook. These meals, available
in single serve and family style, are a great, cost-effective solution for all
those occasions. "
Sushi sales will continue to surge, along with seafood trays for
entertaining and other items, Resner and other experts say.
Shoppers seek restaurant meal replacements
Throughout most of 2024, menu prices remained high and restaurant
trips declined two percentage points, according to Roerink.
" At the moment, the news coming out of the foodservice side of the
business is more of the same. We continue to see headlines announcing
restaurant closures and bankruptcies due to a decrease in trips, "
Roerink said.
As a result, the majority (80%, according to Circana) of shoppers are
still preparing meals from scratch at home. Additionally, a growing
percentage are preparing hybrid meals - a mix of prepared and fromscratch
meals, according to FMI - The Food Institute and 210 Analytics.
However, once the economy starts to turn around, " we are very
likely going to see more meals move back to restaurants, " Roerink said.
Consumers love to treat themselves to a restaurant meal every once in
a while, she acknowledged.
" This means especially higher-income shoppers do continue to enjoy
restaurant meals, though certainly some dollars are diverted to grocery
deli prepared. "
In a 210 Analytics shopper survey, 59% said they would purchase
more grocery deli-prepared meals if money was no object, while 43%
said they would cook more items from scratch.
" In other words, people do crave time-saving convenience, but
finances are standing in the way for many, " she said.
Plus, deli-prepared meals have " stepped up their game as true
restaurant replacements, a la food court-style, where all members of the
household can pick their favorite, " Roerink noted.
If the economy stays relatively strong in 2025, Chris DuBois,
executive vice president, Fresh Foods Practice Leader at Circana,
expects to see a " slight uptick " in food away from home as consumers
respond to some of the pricing changes being made at restaurants. At
58 - JANUARY 2025
supermarketperimeter.com
the same time, food at home will stay strong, with most departments
growing between 0 and 1 percent, he said.
In the incoming Trump administration, there will likely be increased
competition for the customer's spend between restaurants and retail
grocery stores, according to Resner.
" The reemergence of domestic energy focus and future renegotiated
sanctions and tariffs will strengthen our domestic economy; which will
help lower prices due to lower production/energy costs, thus providing
an increase in more disposable income across all income levels. While
there should be cost deflation across both retail and restaurants, we will
see the restaurant index rise as more retail customers begin to be more
confident in their spending power venture out to more meals outside of
the home, " Resner said.
lado2016 - stock.adobe.com, 210 Analytics
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Supermarket Perimeter - January 2025

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