The output of aquatic products has grown steadily, and the space for industrial development is huge

Since 2016, the national fishery output value and aquatic product output have steadily increased
year after year.
Recently, Tmall New Product Innovation Center, together with China Zhoushan International Aquatic City and others, jointly released the "2022 Aquatic Products Market Consumption Trend Report" (hereinafter referred to as the "Report"
).
From the perspective of categories, fish and shellfish are still the main force of aquatic product supply, at the same time, due to the diversification of residents' consumption demand and the upgrading of dietary structure, the consumption of aquatic products continues to rise, of which the output of shrimp and algae has increased significantly, and the future growth space is still huge
.

The scale of online retail of aquatic products has grown rapidly

From the supply side, the output of aquatic products has steadily increased year after year, and the supply of shrimp and algae has increased significantly
.
The "Report" shows that since 2016, the national fishery output value and aquatic product output have maintained a good trend
of steady growth and stable supply year after year.
At the same time, the import value of aquatic products has increased significantly in recent years, bringing more abundant aquatic products to domestic consumers, although it was affected by the epidemic in 2020, but it did not change the overall upward trend
of import value.
From the perspective of categories, fish and shellfish are still the main supply of aquatic products; At the same time, due to the increasing diversification of residents' consumption demand, the output of shrimps, algae and other categories has increased
significantly.

From the perspective of consumption, the upgrading of residents' dietary structure has promoted the consumption of aquatic products to continue to rise, and the future growth space is still huge
.
Thanks to the continuous upgrading of domestic residents' food consumption and the continuous optimization of structure, the characteristics of high protein and low fat of aquatic products have been favored, and the consumption has continued to rise
.
At present, the intake of aquatic products of domestic residents is still significantly lower than the recommended intake of the "Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2022)", and with the awakening of residents' health awareness, there is still huge room
for growth in aquatic product consumption in the future.

The scale of online retail of aquatic products has grown
rapidly.
Riding the rise of online shopping, the retail of agricultural products began to gradually tilt online, and the online sales of aquatic products also increased
.
According to statistics from the Ministry of Commerce, in 2020, the online retail sales of aquatic products were about 34.
5 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 9.
3%.

From 2017 to 2020, the compound annual growth rate of online retail sales of aquatic products reached 23%, and the scale grew rapidly
.

In view of the diversity, convenience and price advantages of aquatic products e-commerce, the report shows that consumers are more satisfied with online channels and more willing to pay
.
Shrimp, kelp and freshwater fish are among the top categories at a high growth rate, while salmon, crab and pike crab have obvious potential
.

Sea cucumbers, hairy crabs and shrimp products are the categories with the highest transaction amount among aquatic products, among which sea cucumbers rank first with high unit prices; In addition, frozen shrimp, shrimp, kelp and freshwater fish also maintain a high market size and grow faster, ranking among the top categories
.
Salmon, cod and pike crab have seen significant growth rates and are key potential categories
.
Among them, salmon, as a high-quality source of deep-sea protein rich in n-3 unsaturated fatty acids, is becoming a new favorite on residents' tables; As a complementary food for children and a representative aquatic product with high nutrition, cod is more popular
among mothers and infants.

More than six of the consumers in the aquatic products market are women, and young adults aged 30-49 also account for 60%.
From the perspective of first- and second-tier cities, nearly half of the population from first- and second-tier cities, and the proportion of people in first-tier cities is significantly higher than that of the entire network.
In terms of education, the population is mainly high school and below, and the proportion of people with bachelor's degree or above is significantly higher than that of
the whole network.
Forty percent of consumers are high-income earners, and 45% have high purchasing power, which is much higher than the level of the entire network, providing opportunities for the development of aquatic products in the direction of high quality and high premium
.

The six major trends in the seafood market performed well

The "Report" pointed out that with the abundant supply of online aquatic products, consumer choices are becoming increasingly diversified, and the six major trend tracks have performed well
.

Trend 1: Quality Upgrade The high-end market is growing rapidly, and aquatic products with special quality and full meat volume are more popular
.
In the past year, high-end brands in the aquatic products market grew the most rapidly, with a year-on-year growth rate of 23%, reflecting the new trend
of consumption upgrading and quality upgrading in the aquatic products market.
When users search for aquatic products, the keywords related to product specifications are outstanding, and products with fat and full meat content (such as extra large, extra large, mid-section, full seeds) and high-quality and delicious quality (such as extra grade, fresh, deep sea, sand-free) are favored
.
At the same time, aquatic products with exquisite packaging such as gift boxes are also popular
with consumers.

Trend 2: Convenient enjoyment Soon after delicious food, the growth rate of highly processed products and prepared dishes is remarkable
.
Urban people live a fast-paced life, and they want the cooking process to be convenient and fast, so the highly processed aquatic products or semi-finished products are welcomed by consumers, not only the products themselves are good quality and delicious, but also save consumers' cooking time
.
For example, processes such as shrimp line, no-wash, and shelling can allow consumers to better enjoy the pleasure of food, and the search popularity and growth rate are good
.
In the deep processing trend track, crayfish, lobster tails and other products are at the head of the market and are the most concerned by users; Bullfrogs are growing the fastest and are expected to become a flashpoint
for deep-processed products in the future.
In addition, products such as shrimp cake and shrimp slip, as well as prepared dishes such as sauerkraut fish and grilled fish, have great
potential for development.

A variety of flavors satisfy consumers' picky taste buds and attract users to continue to repurchase
.
The trend of intensive processing has created conditions for the diversification of aquatic product tastes, bringing consumers a more amazing restaurant-grade taste experience
.
At the same time, the extension and innovation of taste is conducive to continuously mobilizing users' freshness and attracting continuous repurchase
.
At present, spicy flavor is still the mainstream
of shrimp, crab, shellfish flavor.
Raw pickled shrimp, cheese flavored shrimp, sauerkraut fish, cooked drunken crab, sauce scallops, gin soup scallops, rattan pepper shells, mustard octopus, etc.
are all trendy products that are currently growing rapidly in various categories, and have performed well in the past year
.

Trend 3: Freshness comes first Consumers pay special attention to the freshness of aquatic products, and low-temperature or frozen preservation methods have attracted much attention
.
Freshness has always been the most important topic
for consumers when buying fresh aquatic products online.
The keyword "fresh" is the most
popular among seafood-related search terms.
At the same time, consumers are paying more attention to the low-temperature or frozen preservation methods of aquatic products, and the search popularity of keywords such as quick-frozen, frozen products, fresh frozen, salted frozen, and chilled has increased significantly
in the past year.
Frozen preservation technology is becoming more mature, which helps to maintain product quality and taste during long-distance transportation, allowing consumers to enjoy a delicious seafood meal
.

Trend 4: Baby Fresh Food The consumption demand of mothers and babies is prominent, and safe and hygienic and high-quality nutrition are more concerned
by mothers.
The demand for safe and hygienic aquatic products and nutritional content of infants and pregnant women has gradually become prominent, and keywords such as infant and baby complementary foods are on
the rise.
From the perspective of subdivided aquatic products market, the demand for shrimp and fish market is more obvious
.

Trend 5: Health and Nourishment New technology, new taste, new packaging, new gameplay, health nourishment and food fun can be combined
.
The concept of health and nourishment is deeply rooted in people's minds, including sea cucumber, fish maw and other tonics to maintain a high search
popularity.
At the same time, new demand has emerged for health and nourishing water products: new processes, fresh stew, ready-to-eat and new processes of fresh food have emerged, and fresh maw and ready-to-eat sea cucumbers are very popular; New flavors, innovative tastes to meet the needs of consumers for early adopters; New packaging, in order to meet the needs of consumers for more convenient health care, new packaging forms such as bowls, cans, and small packaging make health care more convenient; New gameplay, such as weekly cards and monthly cards, further meet the convenience needs of consumers, and ensure quality with fresh delivery every week
.

Trend 6: Low-fat health Nutrition and health are burden-free, and low-fat, low-salt, low-added, high-protein products are popular in the market
.
On the basis of ensuring the freshness and deliciousness of aquatic products, consumers pay more attention to the nutritional content of products and the safety of ingredients, and prefer aquatic products with low fat, low sodium salt, high protein and low added value, and the sales of products focusing on related selling points are good
.
At the same time, sports people account for nearly 40%
of aquatic product consumers.
Consumers who are keen on fitness and pay attention to health prefer low-fat healthy products with natural ingredients when purchasing aquatic products, which are the target groups
that need to focus on efforts.

Efficient and fine control of the whole industry chain

From the perspective of the popularity and growth rate of user search keywords, kelp, seaweed, fish and other categories are in a mature track, maintaining high popularity while growing steadily; The red devil shrimp, octopus, shrimp cake, bullfrog, etc.
have both high popularity and high growth rate, and are in the star track
.

Bullfrog, sauerkraut fish, grilled fish and other pre-made dishes that have undergone deep processing, and new categories and high-end varieties with high nutritional value such as cherry blossom shrimp, krill and Yantian shrimp have a higher than average growth rate and huge growth potential
.

The report pointed out that benefiting from the influence of the six major market trends of aquatic products, consumers' demand for high-quality brands, high-quality products and high-quality services has become more and more vigorous, creating huge growth opportunities
for the rise of cutting-edge aquatic brands and the construction of brand power and C-end influence of traditional aquatic product enterprises.
At the same time, this also requires the brand side to control the entire industry chain more efficiently and refinedly, and pay more attention to the combination
with the consumer's demand scenarios when conducting marketing communication.

(Wang Jiayi)

China Food News(Version 06, December 13, 2022)

(Responsible editor: Wang Jiayi)