Norwegian representatives of the country’s seafood industry, took part in a panel discussion during a workshop at Seafood Expo Asia. The Exhibition ran from September 11 to 13 in Singapore.
Besides officials from the Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC), the panel included members of the Norwegian and Singaporean seafood industries. The main topic of the discussion was how current market trends in Asia can be leveraged for future growth.
NSC Analyst, Johan Kvalheim, stated that the market for Norwegian salmon in Asia is now dominated by China. Just a year ago, the Japanese market was bigger than both South Korea and China combined.
“There has been a big shift over the last eight months,” Kvalheim said.
According to Kvalheim, there has been several shifts in the seafood industry. Some of these shifts might create a potential avenue increase for Norwegian seafood firms who wishes to boost their sales to Asia.
Most Asian countries are still primarily sourcing products eaten raw, whereas European consumption is mostly cooked salmon. Heated salmon could create a new market for value-added products, since it last longer in transit and do not need to be flown directly into Asia.
“For Norway to grow further in Asia, I strongly believe we have to get into the heated category,” Kvalheim says.
Malcolm Ong from the Singapore-based, The Fish Farmer Founder, added two other potential means of growing seafood consumption in Asia: cost and convenience.
“When I was a child, salmon was for the elite, but along the way, salmon has become a product for the masses,” Ong said.
“There’s two things that I see trending, which is time and money.” Ong added, that a convenient product that costs less will usually win out across the Asian marketplaces.
Source: seafoodsource.com
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