SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD PACKAGING INNOVATIONS WINNING OVER ECO-CONSCIOUS CONSUMERS

MORE SEAFOOD SHOPPERS are using their wallets to take control of their impact on the planet, from the popular fresh grab-and-go case to the frozen aisle, Sealed Air Director of Marketing Scott Corey told SeafoodSource.

“The importance of a package’s sustainability features is equally paramount for fresh and frozen seafood consumers,” Corey said. “Reduced plastic and packaging waste is among the highest-rated sustainability features that consumers look for.”

Several recent studies corroborate Corey’s observation that when it comes to sustainability, consumers look to a product’s packaging first. A survey conducted by Morning Consult, for instance, found that packaging was the component consumers related most closely to sustainability – the surveyor noted a strong link between efficient, lowwaste packaging and consumers’ judgment of a company’s commitment to sustainability.

Another survey from Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (URW) of 6,500 of its retail shoppers across the U.S. found sustainability to be “at the forefront of most consumers’ minds when making purchasing decisions” in 2022. Furthermore, a staggering 90 percent of the URW’s surveyed consumers said they would even be willing to “pay a premium to purchase items that meet their environmentally sustainable criteria.”

When it comes to case-ready seafood – a category that continues to trend in 2023 – and its packaging, Corey noted that shoppers have specific material preferences in mind.

“Consumers are looking for more sustainable packaging formats, and paper and fiber are top of the list – when we asked consumers what packaging formats are most sustainable, they quickly go for paper and fiber solutions,” according to Corey.

Sealed Air’s 2022 Seafood Study found that across five different options, plastic-sealed fiber (53 percent) and paperboard with plastic vacuum film (60 percent) were viewed as the most sustainable by the report’s consumer