Howard Johnson also spoke at the Maine Fishermen’s Forum in early March. His message was the same: worldwide, seafood consumption is rising.
Globally, countries are consuming more and more of their seafood supply, which could lead to an increasing need for the U.S. to reduce its dependence on imported seafood. Johnson sees “an opportunity for all resources to satisfy future demand. This would include any recovery from wild stocks as well as domestic aquaculture.”
Several people who are involved in the seafood industry in Maine commented later by phone on points made in Johnson’s presentation.
Jeff Kaelin, a member of the Maine Legislature’s Marine Resources Committee, observed that Johnson’s figures point to a need for a friendlier climate for aquaculture in Maine, particularly salmon aquaculture. “At this point,” he said, “salmon aquaculture can’t expand in Maine, but growers are trying to fully utilize the lease space they have. They are talking about redistributing locations in Cobscook Bay to maximize the lease sites.” He added that as a member of the legislature he has found that Maine lawmakers feel food production is vitally important, especially in the climate of terrorism. He expressed optimism that fish farmers will be able to obtain additional lease space and focus on growing their businesses once the permitting issues are settled. “Salmon is a fantastic food,” he noted, “and it’s a great business for the state.”
Chip Davison, president of Great Eastern Mussel, agreed that the state needs to be supportive of aquaculture. “It seems like there’s a real opportunity here for Maine,” he said. “The state has to figure out where it’s going to spend its money. We need to maintain a marine infrastructure along the coast. And, we need not to cut the Department of Marine Resources staff any further. We shouldn’t be cutting where we think we will grow.”
Other trends
In his presentation at the Forum, Johnson said that in 2001, consumers the greatest consumer demand was for shrimp, tuna and salmon, in that order. By the year 2005, he anticipates the order will change to shrimp, salmon, tuna and catfish, and by 2010, to shrimp, salmon, catfish, tilapia and tuna. Shrimp, catfish and tilapia can be grown in closed systems, which may provide an opportunity for Maine. However, as Sue Inches, Director of Industry Development at the DMR explained, the major challenge for land-based aquaculture in Maine is the cost of keeping the water heated.
Johnson said that changes in the structure of the wholesale environment are having a notable impact on the way seafood is marketed. He spoke about the formation of grocery empires, such as Kroger buying out 10 companies, and said that casinos and cruise lines put their large shopping lists up for bid. This, he said, creates pressure on seafood wholesalers to satisfy the demand for ever-increasing amounts of their product at the lowest possible price. He believes processors will have to consolidate if they are going to meet this demand. The only other way to survive is to find a small niche market, like oyster growers who sell to restaurants and seafood markets.
Mike Hastings, director of Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center, pointed out that the salmon industry is ahead of the curve in meeting the trend of consolidation. “In 1992, there were 25 individual growers in Maine,” he said. “Now, there are four major growers, (owned by international corporations) and a couple of contract growers.”
Regarding niche markets, Inches made the point that Maine’s groundfishing industry supplies less than one percent of the world supply of groundfish. “I think we have to be creating a brand for a fresh local product,” she said. This may be helped along, she noted, with passage of a potential federal law which would require labeling fresh seafood with country of origin. Susan Barber, director of the Maine Lobster Promotion Council, noted that Maine’s five lobster processors have formed Maine Lobster Processors, Inc. and are following a set of processing guidelines that exceed HACCP regulations and create brand recognition for their product.
Johnson explained several trends in consumer preferences and new marketing techniques that are geared to meet their demands. They included the purchase of more frozen and ready-to-eat products (as an example, he cited the amount of space given in supermarkets to pre-washed, packaged lettuce and greens) and the growth of the natural foods, ethnic and other specialty foods markets. He also said that in most of the U.S., seafood counters are disappearing from supermarkets and being replaced by pre-packaged, ready-to-eat filets which are presented beside meat and poultry products. This trend, he noted, opens the way for innovative packaging and improved technology for extending shelf life.
Atlantic Salmon of Maine has already taken up the challenge by marketing “Fresh Cure,” boneless, skinless marinated 5.5 oz. salmon portions, offered in four marinade styles. The portions are packaged in a modified atmosphere package that extends refrigerated shelf life to 14 days. Melissa Field, spokesperson for Fjord Seafood USA, (parent company of Atlantic Salmon) said each package has a time/temperature indicator that allows the consumer to determine when the fish should no longer be served. Atlantic Salmon is marketing the marinated portions through its value-added brand, Ducktrap River Fish Farm. One of its customers, Whole Foods Markets, has 142 locations across the country.
Kaelin, who consults as federal government liaison for Heritage Salmon, said Heritage salmon markets portions in Canada, but does not have the necessary vertically integrated distribution set up in the USA. He and others said that putting a new product into a supermarket is a costly venture, requiring “millions to place something new in a national distribution chain.” Even so, it seems new value added products will continue to emerge. Presently, Inches said, 70 percent of seafood is eaten in restaurants. “People don’t know how to cook it,” she said, noting this seems to indicate a market for brand name packaged filets with a recipe included.
Davison of Great Eastern Mussels believes there will be an increasing demand for mussels in sauce, and said the company, which already markets two-pound bags of mussels, is thinking along those lines. He believes there is an opportunity for Maine Technology Institute to fund grants to develop new packaging techniques which would extend seafood shelf life.
If the demand for seafood rises as dramatically as the figures suggest, many changes are afoot, and there will be, as Hastings said, “plenty of room in the American seafood market for both wild catch and aquaculture.” And there will be plenty of room for innovative value-added products and marketing techniques.