Consumers in Hong Kong and southern mainland China care most about food safety and freshness when buying seafood at the retail and foodservice levels, according to the results of a survey unveiled during the Asian Seafood Exposition in Hong Kong on Wednesday.
The online survey, which polled nearly 900 consumers, was conducted by The Perishables Group of West Dundee, Ill., in conjunction with Diversified Business Communications of Portland, Maine, organizer of the Asian Seafood Exposition and publisher of SeaFood Business magazine and SeafoodSource.com.
The survey — the results of which were presented during a seminar titled “Analysis of the Asian Consumer Market” at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Center — examined consumers’ seafood-purchasing behaviors in Hong Kong and southern mainland China.
When asked what factor is most important when buying seafood at a retail outlet, 36 percent of respondents said “food safety/cleanliness” and 29 percent said “freshness.”
When asked what factor is most important when buying seafood at a restaurant, 61 percent of respondents said “food safety/cleanliness,” followed by “health/nutrition” at only 16 percent. When asked to rate on a scale of one to five the importance of eight factors when buying seafood at the restaurant level, “food safety/cleanliness” ranked No. 1 at 4.5, followed by “health/nutrition” at 4.2 and “price” and 4.
The importance of food safety to consumers in Hong Kong and southern mainland China makes sense, given that 58 percent of respondents prefer to purchase live seafood and 31 percent prefer to buy fresh seafood, with frozen, packaged and dried product accounting for the remaining 11 percent.
In terms of species preference, shellfish reigned supreme. Shrimp ranked No. 1 at the retail level, followed by scallops, prawns, squid, cuttlefish and crab, while scallops placed No. 1 at the foodservice level, trailed by shrimp, lobster, prawns, crab and squid.
And consumers in Hong Kong and southern mainland China like to plan ahead. Just over half (53 percent) of respondents said they generally know what type of seafood they want to purchase when entering a store or restaurant.
Consumers were also polled on sustainability matters, and a astounding 79 percent of respondents said they know at least “a little” about sustainable seafood — 21 percent knew “a little,” 29 percent were “somewhat knowledgeable,” 21 percent were “knowledgeable” and 8 percent were “completely knowledgeable.” The remaining 21 percent said they know nothing about sustainable seafood. What’s more, 21 percent said they purchase sustainable seafood “regularly” and 37 percent said they buy it “sometimes.”
However, only one-quarter of respondents said they recall seeing an eco-label or a type of message that identifies seafood as sustainable when purchasing fish at a store or restaurant; 34 percent said they’re “not sure” and 41 percent said “no.”
Earlier this year, a survey conducted by The Perishables Group and administered by Diversified found that consumer awareness of sustainable seafood among Americans is lackluster and overshadowed by food safety. The results were presented during the International Boston Seafood Show in March and are available in their entirety by becoming a SeafoodSource premium member.
The results of the survey evaluating consumers’ seafood-purchasing habits in Hong Kong and southern mainland China will be available in their entirety to SeafoodSource premium members later this month.
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