Sainsbury’s is calling its “Switch the Fish” campaign a success.
The initiative challenges the supermarket’s customers to try an “alternative” finfish species. Customers who asked for one of the “Big 5” species — cod, haddock, tuna, salmon or prawns, which account for 80 percent of the British retailer’s total seafood sales — were offered one free portion of coley, hake, mackerel, megrim, pouting or rainbow trout.
The campaign kicked off in London on 17 June, and by midday on that Friday, week-on-week sales of all fish sold at the counter were up 12 percent by volume and 7 percent by value, according to Sainsbury’s. A total of the 6 metric tons of finfish given away in the first week of the promotion.
“The success of our recent Switch the Fish campaign shows that when consumers are actively engaged on the issue of sustainability, they are willing to try alternative species and to help alleviate demand on more pressured fish stocks,” said Ally Dingwall, the retailer’s aquaculture and fisheries manager. “Retailers play a vital role in helping consumers make sustainable choices, and I am proud that Sainsbury’s continues to lead in this way.”
The initiative runs through Friday, with stops two stores in Edinburgh.
The British Trout Association last week reported that, in the first week of the promotion, 1.23 metric tons of rainbow trout were given away, representing the largest share of the 6 metric tons of finfish given away.
