The frozen seafood category is showing unprecedented growth at retail in the United States, according to an analyst speaking at National Fisheries Institute's (NFI) online Global Seafood Marketing Conference on Monday.

IRI data for the 52 weeks ending in December of 2020 showed frozen seafood sales outpacing both fresh and shelf-stable at $7 billion (€5.8 billion), a 35 percent increased compared to the previous year.

"Seeing these big numbers really means this category is on fire," said Anne-Marie Roerink, a principal at 210 Analytics who provides research and marketing strategies in food retailing.

The "frozen fish/seafood" category raked in the most money in at $3.2 billion (€2.7 billion) followed by cooked shrimp at $1.8 billion (€1.5 billion) and raw shrimp at $2 billion (€1.7 billion).

Raw shrimp saw a huge consumer jump from the previous year at nearly 48 percent.

Roerink said the interest from consumers in shellfish in 2020 could be part of the trend of recreating fancy dining experiences at home such as a date night they couldn't go on due to pandemic restrictions.

Fresh seafood raked in $6.7 billion (€5.6 billion) in 2020, with salmon and crab ranking as the most popular foods, followed by lobster. Shelf-stable came in at No. 3 at $2.8 billion (€2.3 billion), with most of the growth coming from tuna.

Frozen seafood also benefited in 2020 by being able to penetrate most consumer markets and categories, according to the data.

It showed nearly 3 in 4 consumers purchased frozen seafood. Trips per buyer averaged around 7, a nearly 22 percent increase from the previous year. Spending amounted to $12.18 (€10.10) per trip, a nearly 5 percent change compared to the previous year.

The annual spend per buyer was $87.97 (€72.95) -- a nearly 28 percent increase compared to the previous year.

"I have never seen numbers like this. This is very very exciting," Roerink said of frozen seafood's 2020 surge.

Markets

'This category is on fire': Frozen seafood sales show unprecedented growth at US retail