Mike Kern, CEO of Long John Silver’s, is calling for a national U.S. seafood marketing organization that would promote the benefits of eating seafood. In an exclusive interview with SeafoodSource, Kern talked about the need for a national marketing organization.
“We have this wonderful protein across many species that I don’t think gets enough recognition as such. We have to sing its praises and find ways to establish its relevancy in the overall consumer marketplace,” Kern said.
The beef, chicken and pork industries do a great job of marketing their proteins on a national level, said Kern, and the seafood industry needs to do the same thing. “We should have a bigger space in the protein market than we do. We need to do things more united as a seafood industry, and further the strength, appeal and relevancy of seafood,” Kern said.
In late August, U.S. Senator Mark Begich (D-AK) proposed legislation to create a national seafood marketing and development effort. The proposal was drafted by a national marketing coalition and supported by 75 fishing groups and affiliated groups from several regions. Begich is expected to introduce the legislation officially this month.
Long John Silver’s executives would be interested in taking part in a national marketing organization, and major industry suppliers would likely participate, according to Kern. “We have partnerships with Trident, American Seafoods and a number of key shellfish suppliers. Very quickly, we can get a half dozen sizeable firms together and get the wheel turning,” Kern said.
Listen to SeafoodSource’s podcast with Mike Kern here.
