This month, SeafoodSource talked to Jim Papadakis, director of marketing for Icelandic USA, about the Newport News, Va., company’s launch of two value-added seafood products: Yuengling Lager Panko Breaded Scallops and the Pollock Sea Dog. Papadakis discussed the innovation behind the new product and the importance of delivering quality seafood products at lower price points in today’s market.
Grandin: What’s the idea behind these two new products?
Papadakis: These are both product extensions to already highly successful seafood lines. Icelandic® saw an opportunity in both product lines to add a unique item that would be a great compliment to the line and offer benefits to our customers.
What is innovative about these two products?
There is definitely nothing innovative around a breaded scallop. But what makes [Yuengling Lager Panko Breaded Scallops] a truly unique product is that we’ve taken what is traditionally a “beer battered” item and made it a “beer breaded” item, something that I’ve not seen yet in the marketplace. Icelandic’s Yuengling Lager Panko Breaded Scallops are made with dry scallops, meaning that they are all natural and not soaked in tripolyphosphates to retain moisture. We coat them with our signature Panko bread crumb and Yuengling® Lager for the most unique beer-breaded scallop in the industry.
We added the Pollock Sea Dog as a more economical choice for our customers. We have an existing Cod Sea Dog and Haddock Sea Dog. Our Pollock Sea Dog offers the same one-of-a-kind “new sandwich” experience but offers our customers and their patrons the lower price point that is being demanded today.
How has the market received these products so far?
On the Yuengling® Lager Panko Breaded Scallops, we had great demand for the item before we were even out of the gate and sold out of our initial inventory prior to even launching the item. The Pollock Sea Dog has been received very well, and again this is a more economical choice than the existing Cod and Haddock Sea Dog, so Icelandic is answering the call for exactly what our customers are demanding. We are confident in both products and the key is to get the repeat sales for long-term success, and I think we are on our way.
Are these products part of any emerging trends you’re seeing in value-added seafood products?
On the Pollock Sea Dog, it’s value, value, value. Excellent quality at a lower price point — that is the name of the game in today’s environment. Anything that we can do as a manufacturer to keep our customers in business and successful.
Will you be introducing new variations in the future?
We created the Sea Dog line several years ago to fill the void of a creative new fish sandwich. Squares, rectangles, formed shapes etc. were all very tired, so Sea Dog answered the call for something new and innovative. It also fit the bill operationally for many of our customers, if they already sold hot dogs or used hot dog buns they could purchase the Sea Dog and not have to make any real adjustments in the back of the house.
On the Yuengling® Lager Battered Seafood, it was a “no-brainer.” We chose Yuengling® because it’s an iconic beer brand in the U.S. and the oldest brewery in the U.S. Consumers respond to the Yuengling® brand, so it’s immediate brand recognition for the seafood line. If you already have an active and consuming audience of a current brand, you don’t have to introduce them to the brand again. They see Yuengling® Seafood, and if they drink the beer then in most cases will instantly connect to the seafood line because of the Yuengling® name.
Why did you pick scallops and pollock as the seafood of choice for these two new products?
Scallops were a natural addition since we already have Yuengling Lager Battered Haddock and Shrimp. Scallops are also a finger food, so the operator can choose how many to put on a plate to control the cost and profit of each plate. That’s very important in today’s value-driven environment, so the scallops give the operator great menu flexibility.
Again, pollock is a more economical choice than the Cod and Haddock Sea Dog. Also, the pollock is an exact size-cut portion, so each portion is exactly 4 ounces, which gives the operator confidence that he is serving the same exact weight and size each time. For cod and haddock, these are natural-cut fillet portions, so while sizing is consistent it is more approximate.
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