SeaFood Business

DEC 2013

SeaFood Business is the global trusted authority for seafood buyers and sellers. We are the seafood industry's leading trade magazine with more than 30 years of experience. Our coverage is based on the "business" of buying and selling seafood.

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Distributor Survey Photo by James Wright Distributors continue to rank sourcing, rising costs and fraud as their big problems. Supply concerns Biennial survey reveals reliability a major issue for distributors BY CHRISTINE BLANK W hile distributors' primary concerns about their business — sourcing, rising costs and product fraud — haven't changed in two years, the challenges have intensifed, SeaFood Business found in its biennial distributor survey. "Supply is always our No. 1 concern. Competition with domestic product from overseas controls the pricing, and goes hand-in-hand with demand," says Joe Lasprogata, VP of new product 34 SeaFood Business December 2013 Industry Trends Getting product takes more time What do you consider to be the three biggest challenges facing the seafood-distribution industry? development for Samuels & Son Seafood in Philadelphia. Ross Swanes, VP of Northern Fish in Tacoma, Wash., says sourcing quality products is not as much a challenge as is urging retail and foodservice buyers to be fexible with product variances. "Tere are fsh available; it is a matter of how stringent the restaurant group or the supermarket chain is. If wild species come in at a certain size — such as there are only large coho salmon available — it can put an inordinate amount of pressure on a particular size," Swanes says. Rising wholesale costs are distributors' second-biggest headache at 59.2 percent in 2013, versus 53 percent of distributors in 2011 who put cost at the top of their list. Product fraud — including country of origin, mislabeling and short weights — is a top concern of 45.8 percent of distributors this year, versus 38 percent in 2011. Rather than wholesale prices, delivering seafood that is a value for consumers is difcult in today's market, some distributors say. "We service some very Sourcing/product availability Rising wholesale prices Product fraud (country of origin, mislabeling, short weights) Rising fuel prices (air, land, sea) Expanding seafood sales Sustainability certification FDA testing HACCP compliance Other 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% Visit us online at www.seafoodbusiness.com

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