Luke’s Lobster | Ready-to-Eat Lobster Meat; Ready-to-Cook Lobster Tails
New York, U.S.A.-based seafood enterprise Luke’s Lobster has seen its first foray into the retail sector met with considerable success.
Toward the end of 2018, the company – which is well-known for its foodservice business across ten U.S. states, and internationally in Japan and Taiwan – launched its Ready-to-Eat Lobster Meat and Ready-to-Cook Lobster Tails at Whole Foods Markets locations throughout the United States.
The retail kits, which were both priced starting at USD 19.99 (EUR 17.55), feature lobster that is sustainably sourced from coastal Maine fishermen. The Ready-to-Eat Lobster Meat kit features half a pound of lobster knuckle and claw meat, a packet of Luke’s Lobster seasoning, and instructions on how to make a lobster roll in the restaurant’s style at home. The Ready-to-Cook Lobster Tails is comprised of two raw Maine lobster tails, lemon garlic marinade, and tips on how to thaw, prep, and prepare grilled marinated lobster tails.
“We never dreamed when we opened one tiny shack nine years ago that we’d someday be in Whole Foods Market nationwide,” Luke's Lobster founder Luke Holden said in November 2018. “It’s an honor to be able to partner with the preeminent retailer of organic and sustainable food to bring America the world's best-tasting seafood.”
In April 2019, Whole Foods hosted its seventh annual Supplier Awards, where it honored Luke’s Lobster as its Global Supplier of the Year for 2018 and as the recipient of its Purpose Driven Empowerment Award.
Here’s what Luke’s Lobster had to share with SeafoodSource about its innovation process for Ready-to-Eat Lobster Meat and Ready-to-Cook Lobster Tails.
What kind of trends have informed Luke’s Lobster’s latest product innovations?
Frozen seafood is a hot topic these day among food writers who are increasingly recognizing the value of flash-freezing fish. As a result, people are more motivated than ever to purchase quality, frozen seafood from trusted brands. Just in time to meet this demand, we partnered with Whole Foods Market to release our first-ever Luke's Lobster retail kits last November, earning us Whole Foods' 2018 Global Supplier of the Year award and allowing us to reach seafood lovers across the country who are looking for best in class lobster.
What key features serve to set Luke’s Lobster’s new products apart in the market?
With this trend on the rise, it's important for consumers to remember that not all frozen seafood is created equal. Our Ready-to-Eat Lobster Meat and Ready-to-Cook Lobster Tails offer the highest quality seafood, sustainably fished off the coast of Maine and immediately steamed to perfection at our own Seafood Company to preserve freshness and quality. The lobster is then flash frozen using cutting-edge nitrogen freezing technology, locking in freshness that results in the highest quality taste and texture, and allows Luke's fans across the country to have access to the freshest lobster in the world. Buyers can trace our meat all the way back to the harbor it was sourced from, with a percentage of sales of our lobster kits going right back to that source: our partners at the Tenants Harbor Fisherman's Co-Op and Cranberry Isles Fishermen's Co-Op in Maine.
Which products have been resonating with customers?
Both our Ready-to-Eat Lobster Meat and Ready-to-Cook Lobster Tails have been very popular with Whole Foods customers looking to eat high quality lobster at home, with most of the work already done for them. Our lobster tails come with two flash-frozen tails and a packet of lemon garlic marinade, perfect for a simple but special meal ready to be grilled, while the lobster meat contains a packet of our Secret Seasoning, adaptable for a multitude of different recipes.
Photo courtesy of Luke’s Lobster
