Michael Swanson, chief agricultural economist at US financial giant Wells Fargo, gave the lowdown on how pandemic recovery would re-shape the seafood sector as part of the 15th IntraFish Seafood Investor Forum, held online earlier this month.
In conversation with IntraFish Editor-in-Chief Drew Cherry, Swanson outlined the key changes set to influence consumer purchasing and consumption and how seafood companies can best place themselves to be prepared.
One of the key trends of the pandemic, a swap between at-home and foodservice spending, may never completely reverse, he said. While that's been a challenge for many companies, the trend has also pushed consumers to cook fish more at home.
"That’s going to be a positive outcome for seafood," he said.
He also encouraged the seafood industry not to compete with other proteins, but to instead focus on seafood's health message, its variety and how easy it is to prepare.
"You can always make lemonade out of lemons."
