The global seafood industry is currently grappling with uncertainties in trade, environmental changes, and more, but one thing it can focus on moving forward that is fully within its control is how to better connect with customers, according to Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC) Consumer Behavior Analyst Lars Moksness.
Launching a new NSC report titled “Top Seafood Consumer Trends 2025” at the Norway-U.K. Seafood Summit, the latest edition of which was recently held in London, Moksness said consumers in the digital age are aware of tactics companies employ to push them into making purchases.
As a result, Moksness said brands must tread carefully in their marketing – ensuring they build engagement without losing consumer trust.
One way to accomplish that goal is by developing authenticity, he said.
Highlighting that today’s advertising landscape comprises multi-generational influencer marketing and a greater focus on individual consumers, he said that, together with relatability, authenticity cultivates a sense of community and trust.
He added that it’s also important for brands to understand the preferences of different generations so that they can engage authentically across age groups.
This is especially important, Moksness said, as the geopolitical landscape, global power dynamics, and trade policies all face upheaval.
“Now, it's perhaps more important than in a very long time to overcome uncertainty, and … craft possible outcomes in order to be best possibly prepared,” he said.
When trying to engage with consumers, it is crucial for companies to analyze what is driving global seafood consumption, which helps them also understand consumer pain points, Moksness said.
The NSC report laid out six factors that are particularly affecting today’s consumption trends: technological advancements, demographic shifts, environmental changes, economic shifts, geopolitical developments, and social evolution.
The interconnectivity of these six trends is essential to understand, according to Moksness, such as how environmental shifts interact with technological developments and how that might fit into and shape geopolitics.
Another example is how some consumers’ concern about climate change outweighs their concerns about inflation in some instances.
“Even though prices are steep, and people are feeling the pinch, there's still a willingness among consumers to pay more for sustainable food, including seafood,” he said.
The NSC report found that this is the case among 78 percent of those surveyed in China, 71 percent in Thailand, and 56 percent in the U.K. Across 11 NSC global deep dive studies, the lowest this figure drops to is 37 percent in Spain and Portugal.
“While demographic shifts focus on changes in population dynamics and their direct impact on consumer demand, social evolution, on the other hand, encompasses broader changes in societal values that influence consumer preferences and expectations,” he said. “It’s here that consumers prioritize sustainability and, especially, ethical sourcing in their seafood choices.”
Though some consumers may feel strongly about this issue, others believe that inflation outweighs any other concern.
“Financial constraints are also increasing the demand for more affordable seafood production and the shift toward frozen and value-added products. For at least two years now, the top global worry has been rising prices and inflation,” Moksness said. “People are also feeling it when it comes to seafood. Last November, when we asked those who fell out of the [seafood consumption] criteria for the reason, price came up as ‘very important’ among many.”
NSC’s report notes that in the organization’s analysis of the 11 different markets, price was an “overwhelming factor” impacting the category among low-consumption fish and seafood eaters. For example, in Brazil and Thailand, 47 percent and 38 percent, respectively, said seafood was too expensive.
Though this creates a tricky balancing act for companies, Moksness said authenticity should underpin any marketing effort, regardless of the approach a company may take.
