Tampa Maid Foods
Convenience is still king, even amid a global pandemic – a trend Lakeland, Florida, U.S.A.-based Tampa Maid Foods has been keenly aware of throughout 2020 and well into 2021.
“Seafood offerings that are convenient and easy to prepare are resonating with both consumers who are cooking more meals from home, and also for restaurant operators grappling with labor issues,” Tampa Maid Foods Director of Marketing Jenny Doan told SeafoodSource.
Of course, ease-of-preparation isn’t the only thing consumers and operators have been craving from their seafood products as of late, Doan said, noting that adventurous flavor profiles are also in high demand.
“As consumers are eating more meals at home these days, flavor fatigue and boredom are setting in. That busy mom is struggling to serve something new and different,” Doan told SeafoodSource in October 2020, when Tampa Maid rolled out two new Margaritaville products in U.S. grocery stores.
The products, Stuffed Flounder and LandShark Beer Battered Cod, expanded into Food Lion, ACME, Lowes, and other supermarket chains in autumn 2020, as demand for Margaritaville’s shrimp and fish appetizers and entrees spiked in light of more consumers eating from home.
“By providing elevated flavors, unique and differentiated offerings from a brand that is associated with fun, our sales have certainly benefitted during these challenging times,” Doan said at the time.
Both products are Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)- certified and the species featured in them – flounder and cod – have proven popular among consumers, Doan noted. The fish “also lend well to enhancements, including added flavors, textures, etcetera,” Doan added.
Stuffed Flounder features crabmeat stuffing wrapped in flounder fillets and butter, while LandShark Beer Battered Cod is comprised of cod fillets dipped in LandShark Lager beer batter with a Jalapeno Tartar Sauce. They each retail for or a suggested USD 7.99 (EUR 6.83) to USD 9.99 (EUR 8.54).
This past year, the company launched a new line of Margaritaville Bites, available in four flavors: Buffalo Shrimp, Crunchy Shrimp Bites, Pimento Cheese Bites, and Krab Bites. The launch, again, was geared towards helping consumer stave off food boredom and to capitalize on the recent snacking fad, Doan said.
Beyond its Margaritaville suite of products, Tampa Maid also recently established a proprietary coating system, Crunch Keeper, which “keeps foods crunchier and crispier longer,” Doan explained, as well as a Mexican Street Corn Breaded Shrimp product in partnership with Sysco.
In this SeafoodSource Q&A, Doan shares more about Crunch Keeper and its pandemic origins, as well as Tampa Maid’s plans for the future.
Photo courtesy of Tampa Maid Foods
