Throw Backs 1985
Giant challenge Large food corporations view seafood's potential differently
July/August 1985 Vol. 4 | No. 4
times per week like beef and poultry, it had to go big. Demand for seafood in the mid-1980s was on the rise, but as the article How the Food Giants Approach Seafood explained, entering the mainstream of processed food products with standardized, consistent quality was perhaps the only way to improve its position in the American
I
f seafood were to be another staple protein, consumed at home multiple
diet. Major food corporations like Sara Lee Corp., ConAgra, Kraft, Campbell Soup Co., Pillsbury, Nestle, General Mills and Rich-SeaPak all had their individual strategies, yet there was no consensus on any kind of "magic formula" for driving seafood sales. As time would eventually tell, many of these large food corporations couldn't master seafood and are now out of the business.
1997
On the label Surprisingly, seafood doesn't cash in on health claims
N
early all of the top-selling seafood species would qualify for one or
more health claims on food packaging labels, such as "lean," "extra lean" or "low fat." But the article T e Health Hurdle asked the simple question: Do many seafood fi rms use them? "Not to my knowledge," said Roy Martin, VP-science and technology for the National Fisheries Institute (NFI). "I have no idea why." One reason is that
so much seafood is sold fresh at the display counter, with no packaging or labels. But even value-added seafood meal makers weren't biting on the health-craze trend, leaving many to question whether health claims could sell seafood. Today you see "heart- healthy omega-3s" on lots of seafood items, but marketing eff orts still focus on fl avor, value and now sustainability to keep the fi sh moving.
July/August 1997 Vol. 16 | No. 5
2009
Coming up short Weights-and-measures fraud schemes run rampant
July 2009 Vol. 28 | No. 7
ineff ectiveness typically focus on inadequate manpower and funding to meet its mammoth responsibilities. Seems it has been that way for many years, as the fraudulent practice of using excessive ice glazing on frozen seafood products had been causing problems — with very few repercussions — all along the supply chain since the 1970s,
C For updated NEWS, go to www.SeafoodSource.com
omplaints about the Food and Drug Administration's
according to the article T e Weighting Game. T e seafood industry began taking matters into its own hands by establishing the Better Seafood Board (a program established by NFI) to mediate complaints. "Two years ago, [short weighting] was so pervasive that if you weren't going to be involved in short weights, you weren't getting in — the market was entrenched," said Bill Dresser of Sea Port Products.
July 2012 SeaFood Business 11