Phillips Foods, one of the largest U.S. suppliers of crabmeat, has purchased two plants in Canada to process lobster and snow crab as it launches new products.
The facilities include the former South Shore Seafoods plant in Bloomfield, Prince Edward Island, Canada, and the former Pêcheries Bas-Caraquet Fisheries plant in Bas-Caraquet, New Brunswick.
The Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A.-based crabmeat specialist formed a Canadian subsidiary to purchase South Shore Seafoods out of bankruptcy, reaching an asset purchase agreement between Deloitte Restructuring and new subsidiary it dubbed Phillips Bridge Seafoods.
“Phillips was looking to diversify and grow the overall business,” Phillips Vice President of Retail Sales and Marketing John Baxter told SeafoodSource.
Baxter declined to disclose additional details about the acquisitions.
While the company currently does not plan to manufacture value-added products at either facility, Phillips is launching refrigerated pasteurized lobster meat products for the first time, Baxter said. It is also debuting a frozen crab toast appetizer after several years of success with its shrimp toast appetizer, and will demo both products at Seafood Expo North America in Boston, Massachusetts, from 10 to 12 March, at booth #2967.
“We are looking forward to creating new excitement with our pasteurized lobster meat in the refrigerated set,” Baxter said. “It is something relatively new to the industry, but we have experience with the pasteurization process, and we will be vertical with our Canadian resources.”
Phillips’ lobster meat will be available to both retailers and foodservice outlets in 1 pound, 8-ounce, and 5-ounce packages.
“Our thought process is that working with a smaller package and it being fresh (pasteurized) will offer a tremendous opportunity for not only value at foodservice but will help manage shrink and over inventorying a high-priced item,” Baxter said.
Lobster is hot on U.S. restaurant menus as a seasonal addition for Lent, particularly at Orlando, Florida, U.S.A.-based Red Lobster, which has revived its popular Lobsterfest promotion and added several new shrimp and lobster dishes to its menu.
Later this year, Phillips plans to roll out value-added lobster products, and Baxter said he also expects Phillips’ new Crab Toast appetizer – sold in 9.5-ounce packages and paired with pineapple sweet chili sauce – to sell well.
“[Crab has] continued to develop a national acceptance and is seen on menus and in retailers across the country,” he said.
Phillips has seen sales and distribution of its appetizer offerings grow as the country has shifted to a “new normal” post-Covid with more flexible working environments and restaurants reopening, Baxter said.
U.S. consumers are still price-sensitive as a result of rapid inflation, according to Baxter, but they’re still willing to pay for products they crave, he said.
Phillips increased prices on some of its value-added items in the second half of 2023, due to raw material costs, freight, labor, and other expenses, he said.
“If the quality is there, then the consumer will pay a little more for that, as well as uniqueness,” he said. “Our products have always been associated with a quality eating experience that we have been very consistent with our unit sales.”
Photo courtesy of Phillips Foods
