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Promotion and Growth of the UK Shellfish Trade

Mike Warner Project & Business Development Manager

Shellfish Association of Great Britain 1

Tuesday 26th September 2017

SAGB Marketing Project

❖ Overall UK seafood consumption per capita is approx 15-20 kgs per person, which is predominantly made up of oily or white fish

❖ In 2015, UK vessels landed 708,000 tonnes of seafood into the UK and abroad with a value of £775 million

❖ Compared with 2014, this represents a 7% decrease in quantity and a 10% decrease in value and was mainly driven by the pelagic sector (Seafish)

❖ Of the five main species consumed domestically, the only shellfish species to feature are imported prawns. (cold or warm water)

❖ Domestically landed shellfish, although important commercial catches, do not feature significantly in domestic consumption

❖ 2/3 nephrops landed into the UK are exported

❖ Other significant exports included massively under-utilised species such as whelks, spider crab and cuttlefish

❖ UK consumer has very little understanding of these (and most) shellfish products and a complete disconnect exists between the retail sector and the catch/aquaculture sector leading to poor and misinformed decision making

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OVERVIEW

HOW WILL IT WORK?

❖ Education and outreach - fostering links between fishermen, processors and consumers

❖ Restaurant/retailer accreditation through direct producer support for total traceability

❖ Promoting seasonality and tying that concept into better marketing

❖ Promoting traceability and the “boat to plate story”

❖ Recognising and grasping new export opportunities as they arise

❖ Focussing on under-utilised and non-quota species eg cuttlefish

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A CULTURE CHANGE

❖ Why don't UK consumers eat more domestically produced shellfish?

❖ Healthy eating is widely marketed and publicised but does not generally include seafood

❖ The health, nutritional and well being benefits of eating shellfish, actually make it the ultimate “superfood”

❖ Too much misinformation and myth

❖ Key influencers: chefs, retailers, wholesalers must be educated

❖ The diversity of domestically produced shellfish means a sustainable source of wild (or farmed) organic protein with a significantly lower carbon footprint than mass produced protein from agriculture

❖ Generational gap: “when it comes to eating seafood, we’ve lost our Grandparents’ nerve” Keith Floyd

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THE PROJECT - AIMS & OBJECTIVES

❖ To endorse and promote multiple benefits of eating UK shellfish - in all forms

❖ To promote a better and increased understanding of wild capture and aquaculture techniques

❖ To educate and inform key influencers as to how utilising domestically produced shellfish can benefit their businesses and to assist them in growing their sales

❖ To foster dialogue between the catch/aquaculture sector leading to better understanding of the “boat-to-plate” process and thereby instilling a better understanding of the inherent value of shellfish

❖ To change the overall public perception of shellfish as a food source ultimately, leading to increased consumption

❖ To promote sustainability, not just for fish stocks themselves, but right through to viability of the economic communities that they support

❖ Increase SAGB membership at all levels

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FUNDING

❖ MMO

❖ Fishmongers Company

❖ Producer

❖ Service Sector

❖ Consumer

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There’s never been more need, or a better time than this, to promote UK Shellfish”

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www.shellfish.org.uk