The specialty foods category shot up in popularity during the 2020 COVID-19 crisis in the United States, and seafood in that category did especially well, according to new research.
Refrigerated and frozen seafood, meat, and poultry sales in specialty and natural food retailers jumped 29 percent to reach US 5.4 billion (EUR 4.5 billion), according to SPINS data presented in the Specialty Food Association’s (SFA) State of the Specialty Food Industry report. The category’s sales also soared 33 percent from 2018 through 2020.
A "specialty food" is defined as being of higher value and quality, typically due to unique or limited sourcing or exceptional craftsmanship used in making the product, according to market research firm Mintel.
Overall, specialty food sales soared 19.4 percent to reach USD 170.4 billion (EUR 141 billion) in 2020. Categories related to cooking at home soared, benefiting both frozen and refrigerated seafood product sales, as well as frozen entrees, baking mixes, pasta, and sauces.
“[Shoppers] were looking for special kinds of cuts and were getting bored with what they were making at home. They were looking for scallops and specialty things like that they weren’t having before,” SFA Vice President of Content and Education Denise Purcell told SeafoodSource. “Meat, poultry, and seafood took the number-one spot because of all the cooking from home. People weren’t going out to eat and the center-of-the-plate proteins did really well.”
Overall, sales of frozen foods grew significantly through the specialty and natural channel last year. Sales of prepared frozen entrees that contained meat, poultry, and seafood grew 16.7 percent year-over-year. Sales of non-entrée prepared meat, poultry or seafood items soared 30 percent, according to SFA.
Overall frozen and refrigerated seafood sales jumped 27.4 percent in the specialty food channel from 2019 to 2020.
Seafood is expected to perform well in the specialty and natural food channel in the future as distinctions such as “free of antibiotics”, “sustainably sourced,” and “traceable” are expected to remain top-of-mind for shoppers, according to SFA.
The overall specialty market is expected to grow 4.4 percent compounded annually by 2025. Retailers have told SFA fresh meat and seafood sales are still “blowing up” in 2021, Purcell said.
The top 10 categories in retail sales (by value) in 2020 were: Meat, poultry, seafood; cheese and plant-based cheese; chips, pretzels, snacks; bread and baked goods; coffee and hot cocoa; frozen desserts; refrigerated entrees; chocolate and other confectionery; frozen lunches and dinners; and condiments, dressings, and marinades.
The top 10 fastest growing categories (by value) in 2020 were: seasonings; shelf-stable sauces, pasta, and pizza; beans, grains, and dry rice; frozen fruits and vegetables; creams and creamers; refrigerated plant-based meat alternatives; refrigerated pasta; refrigerated tea and coffee; tofu; and shelf-stable creamers and creamers.
Cheese and plant-based cheese was the top specialty food category in sales in 2019.
Photo courtesy of Browne Trading Co.
