Nearly three-fourths of seafood consumers say origin labeling influences their purchases of seafood, according to recent research from the Norwegian Seafood Council.
Recognizing this trend, a number of governments around the world are legislating for greater transparency across supply chains.
According to the NSC, this pressure from both consumers and governments is causing the seafood industry to find ways it can provide consumers with information about seafood provenance and sustainability, largely leaning on digitizing information to make it happen.
To that end, QR codes on products are replacing barcodes at grocery stores, offering retailers a “huge opportunity,” according to the NSC, in the seafood information they can make available at consumers’ fingertips, including its place of origin, what feed the fish was raised on, and how to cook it.
Norwegian Seafood Association Director of Aquaculture and Market Access Kjetil Hestad said that QR codes give consumers “the possibility of information.”
“Where [consumers’] salmon or cod comes from is something that consumers more frequently want to know,” he said. “These are the important, underlying questions that can be answered by QR codes.”
Whether consumers actually use QR codes or whether retailers can successfully raise awareness about the technology is up for debate, Hestad said, but he said consumer education is vital and needs industry-wide support on a larger scale.
Retailers are also using algorithms to assess and predict demand and streamline inventories, minimizing losses and making sure suppliers have what they need at the right times, the report found.
The NSC’s “Oceans of Change: Seafood trends from 2024” report, released earlier this year, highlighted that such retailers as Amazon, Walmart, and Target are using generative AI to personalize product recommendations and develop new products and services, optimize pricing and inventory levels, and create targeted marketing campaigns.
Beyond QR codes and complex algorithms, the NSC also said that delivery apps and omnichannel services like “click-and-collect” options are driving change in seafood purchasing, especially as they become more mainstream.
“These trends have only served to accelerate the existing taste for convenience [post-Covid], which has grown into a huge segment across all reaches of consumer society – seafood included,” NSC said.
The council cited data from global intelligence platform Statistica, which is expecting the online food delivery market to reach USD 1.22 trillion (EUR 1.1 trillion) in 2024, with a predicted compound annual growth rate of just over 10 percent, resulting in a projected market volume of USD 1.79 trillion (EUR 1.6 trillion) by 2028. Statistica further expects grocery delivery services to reach a market value of USD 790 billion (EUR 706.3 billion) in 2024.
Retail use is not the only way the industry is employing technology, however.
NSC Global Consumer Analyst Lars Moksness said that one of the overarching themes emerging from the Oceans of Change report was the speed with which the industry is embracing digital transformation.
On the producer side, Moksness explained that technology, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), is not only helping improve traceability but is also offering new solutions to challenges such as safe ocean harvesting practices.
Additionally, machine learning, coupled with computer vision technology, offers “immense potential” in analyzing large volumes of data collected from fish farms, where it enables more effective and data-driven decision-making, according to the NSC.
In its report, NSC cited the example of XpertSea’s XperCount technology, which uses cameras and machine learning applied to count microorganisms in ponds and weighs shrimp in a matter of seconds.
Farmers are also using machine learning to monitor fish growth and health in aquaculture systems, with the report stating that Internet of Things (IoT) sensors in aquaculture have become increasingly important, enabling real-time data collection and analysis and allowing farmers to optimize their operations and better ensure the welfare of their fish.
“IoT essentially supports ‘smart fish farming’ in a sector where growth takes place out of sight and underwater, making farming activity hard to monitor. Maximizing yield via precision aquaculture is one of the main challenges that could be addressed through the addition of IoT technology,” the NSC report said.
In wild-capture fisheries, NSC cited Norwegian fishing company Ava Ocean, which is using new technology to identify scallops on the seafloor and then is harvesting them using the “Ava Ray” seabed harvester, which is guided by multiple cameras and sensors and which uses a precision water-flow system to gently lift targeted scallops.
Technology is also bringing change to the B2B side, with the report giving the example of Edinburgh, Scotland-based Rooser, which has created a seafood trading platform that connects buyers and sellers across Europe. With the company claiming that one in three fish caught are never eaten, its solution is intended to offer faster, more transparent seafood buying and selling while simultaneously reducing waste.
French e-procurement platform Klarys offers a similar service, and CEO Renaud Enjalbert told SeafoodSource in August that companies ignoring technological change are being left behind.
“We have two types of companies right now: the ones that say problems will just go away and ones that realize if they want to improve their resiliency, they need to work on it,” he said.
The NSC’s report echoes Enjalbert’s current assessment of the industry.
“As we look to the horizon, it’s evident that the seafood industry stands at a crossroads. The path forward requires a blend of consumer awareness, industry adaptation, and regulatory foresight,” NSC said. “This journey offers immense opportunities for stakeholders to redefine the norms of seafood production and consumption, aligning them with those of a rapidly changing world.”
