Greater numbers of younger and multicultural consumers are creating new seafood buying patterns

Changing consumer demographics are presenting seafood retailers with a more fluid and challenging merchandising environment.

An aging base of boomers (persons born between 1946 and 1964) and larger numbers of younger and multicultural customers are impacting shopper interest in specific species and altering how operators can most effectively merchandise selections, said Rick Stein, vice president of fresh foods for Arlington, Va.-based FMI—The Food Industry Association.

Over half of frequent seafood consumers are either Gen Z (persons born between 1997 and 2012) or millennials (persons born between 1981 and 1996), and 41% are more likely to be a minority, including Hispanic (20%) or Black (18%), than the average shopper, reports FMI’s the Power of Seafood 2025 report. Boomers and Gen X (persons born between 1965 and 1980) comprise the majority of occasional seafood consumers.

The shopping behavior of Gen Z consumers presents one of the greatest opportunities for brands and retailers, reports McKinsey & Company, a New York-based global management consulting firm. The segment is “projected to make up not only the largest generation but also the wealthiest in history,” McKinsey states, noting that the average 25-year-old U.S. Gen Z consumer has a household income of $40,000, which adjusted for inflation is 50% higher than the average boomer’s income at the same age.

Related:Information is the answer for greater seafood activity

In addition, Gen Z spending is growing twice as fast as previous generations’ spending did at the same age and is on pace to eclipse boomers’ spending globally by 2029, McKinsey notes.

Seafood merchandisers are in position to generate greater activity from Gen Z shoppers as 58% of the segment eats seafood regularly and the consumers are more likely than the general population to not eat red meat regularly, states the Power of Seafood.

About 31% of Gen Z seafood consumers increased their seafood consumption in the past year versus 27% of the general population, while 32% have decreased and 37% remained the same, the Power of Seafood notes. Factors causing the decrease include prices/inflation, increases in other protein consumption and a desire for variety, the report states.

Retailers can boost younger shopper spending by offering cooked, ready-to-cook, ready-to-eat and grab-and-go selections in response to their interest in convenience and “fast-paced lifestyles,” Stein said. Merchandisers also can build “confidence and loyalty” by staging cooking demonstrations and offering recipe ideas and educational content both in-store and digitally, he said.