The Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC), which proudly represents Seafood from Norway (SFN), has launched a new whitefish campaign, Explore, to get more seafood on UK dining tables. Specifically, the initiative will champion sustainable seafood and drive inspiration for simple at-home cookery with Norwegian cod and haddock.
Despite the majority of UK consumer seafood purchases stemming from retail, there exist a number of widely known barriers to seafood consumption, including low confidence in seafood handling and a lack of recipe inspiration. As a result, most Brits are still only eating around half of the amount of seafood recommended by health professionals. But diets are evolving; 49% of all food and drink purchases now relate to a ‘health’ mission and with greater focus on eating healthily and with sustainability in mind, the opportunity for seafood is huge. Consumers simply need more guidance and inspiration to build their confidence for enjoying seafood at home.
Launched in the wake of NSC’s latest whitepaper, Building Seafood Consumer Confidence to Boost Consumption, ‘Explore’ is set to excite the tastebuds of UK consumers and expand their seafood repertoire. Pulling on emotional taste and easy drivers and presenting inspirational ways to explore simple cookery with Norwegian cod and haddock at home, Explore aims to get more fish onto UK dining tables.
The omni-channel recipe-focused SFN campaign has a predicted reach of over 30 million consumers and will run from October through to the middle of November. Via several targeted channel activations including OOH high traffic advertising across London; strategic paid-for digital media; and home-cook influencer content, all with the aim to discover or rediscover these traditional proteins. Bringing the campaign to life across retail-owned channels, Explore is offered to UK retailers to influence at point of purchase; this year the initiative will be activated in Asda, Waitrose and Sainsbury’s, with a goal to illustrate the versatility of Norwegian cod and haddock, and the ease at which it can be prepared at home.
Victoria Braathen, UK director for the Norwegian Seafood Council, comments: “This is an exciting national campaign to educate and inspire on the potential of whitefish, and following encouraging pre-tests, we expect it to resonate well with UK consumers.
“It’s no secret that the market is continuing to face challenging times but looking at the bigger picture, seafood is well-aligned to consumer megatrends; it is the perfect fit for consumers wanting healthy, sustainable and delicious meal options.
“What we believe is needed, both to retain and grow the category, is greater guidance, inspiration and celebration of origin to build consumer confidence and achieve understanding for the value of seafood products.
Continued Braathen: “Close collaboration with industry partners and dialogue with retailers to explore and engage over the drivers around confident seafood purchasing is key. We look forward to building on the momentum of Explore with all UK retailers championing Norwegian, and continuing to take pride in the sustainable seafood category as the market evolves.”
