US-based Blue Circle Foods, a key supplier of sustainable seafood to retailer Whole Foods Market, has launched a new smoked salmon product in its Whole Foods exclusive line and is focusing on frozen products to meet increased demand in the categories.

Blue Circle is seeing growth in the smoked segment, as well as the frozen category, David Pilat, Blue Circle's vice president of business development, told IntraFish.

"Customers want convenience without sacrificing quality, and so we are seeing increased demand for high-quality seafood they can keep frozen until ready to use," he said. "We’re in the process of expanding our frozen offerings and are excited to launch new products under the Blue Circle brand in early 2019."

Blue Circle's new cold smoked salmon, sold exclusively at Whole Foods nationwide under the Changing Seas brand, is topped with a mildly spicy blend of pepper and garlic. The 4 oz. package has a suggested retail price of $6.99 (€6.14).

The company added the new item based on strong sales of the company's Changing Seas Peppered Hot Smoked Salmon. The Changing Seas line now includes cold smoked and hot smoked salmon, in both plain and peppered SKUs.

Blue Circle teams with Biomar, Norwegian farmer to double omega-3 in salmon

The company's Atlantic salmon is a leading product with Whole Foods consumers, with its Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified cod right behind it.

Blue Circle’s Norwegian farm partner Kvarøy is now producing salmon with double the omega-3 content of the industry standard and extremely low levels of marine contaminants.

"We are also seeing rising consumer demand for high quality value-added items, especially in the frozen category," he said.

The company also supplies larger club pack-style seafood for Whole Foods Market, which include its Atlantic Salmon and wild-caught MSC Cod.