Cases of the omicron variant of COVID-19 are rising rapidly in the United Kingdom, and a resulting government-mandated shutdown could impact seafood sales.
The type of chilled meat and seafood consumers are purchasing more often in the U.K. through the coronavirus pandemic may be impacted by additional lockdowns brought on by the surge, according to data and consultancy firm Kantar. Seven deaths related to omicron have been reported in the U.K., and the country’s government is considering the reimplementation of regional lockdowns or even a nationwide shutdown to prevent the spread of omicron, according to CNBC.
Kantar’s latest grocery sales data showed that chilled fish sales in the U.K. experienced relatively minor growth of 0.8 percent for the quarter ending 28 November, but sales rose more than 13 percent for the same quarter in 2019.
The performance of the chilled fish category was driven by added-value and battered products, which both had “strong double-digit growth,” Kantar said in the report. Added-value sales rose 18.2 percent for the quarter and spiked 32.5 percent versus the same period two years ago. Battered seafood sales rose 11.9 percent compared to 2020, and jumped 74.8 percent compared to the non-pandemic year of 2019.
“Whilst price inflation is also evident within chilled fish, it is not the driver of battered performance, which gained an additional 140,000 shoppers year-on-year,” Kantar said. “Shopper gains were also enjoyed by added value, suggesting convenience has been important once more.”
As time pressures build following a widescale return to the workplace, many shoppers are turning to practical, easier, time-saving ways of preparing meals, boosting added-value and ready-prepared meal sales, Kantar said
“However, further lockdowns could change this scenario once again,” Kantar Worldpanel Consumer Insight Director Stewart Wise said.
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