"Shrimp Surpasses Salmon" Seafood More Popular Than Fish This Year

Market Kurly Analyzes This Year's Seafood Sales... Seafood Sales Up 173% Year-on-Year, Surpassing Fish
Significant Online Sales Growth Not Only for Popular Items Like Shrimp, Oysters, and Squid but Also Mussels, Sea Cucumbers, and Lobsters

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Kim] Market Kurly announced on the 18th that, after analyzing seafood sales this year, the sales volume of seafood such as shrimp, oysters, abalone, and mussels has surpassed that of fish.

Until last year, the category with the highest sales volume among seafood was fish. Grilled mackerel and dried yellow corvina, and raw fish such as salmon and flatfish were popular, recording sales about 30-40% higher than seafood every year. However, an analysis of Market Kurly's seafood sales from January to February 16 this year showed that seafood accounted for 31% of the total, surpassing fish at 27% for the first time. Compared to the same period last year, seafood sales increased by 173%, nearly double the growth rate of fish at 91%.

Market Kurly cited changes in consumer trends due to COVID-19 as the reason for the increased popularity of seafood. Among seafood, which requires freshness, seafood and shellfish are considered ultra-fresh foods, and thus have an overwhelmingly higher offline purchase ratio than online. However, after COVID-19, customers who purchased fish and sashimi online felt satisfied with the freshness, and this learning effect lowered the entry barrier to buying seafood online.

The product that led the popularity of seafood is shrimp. Shrimp, which is favored by all ages and suitable for various dishes, saw sales increase by 206% compared to the previous year. Its sales volume was 52% higher than salmon, the top-selling fish. Among shrimp, peeled shrimp?where the head, shell, and intestines are pre-processed for immediate cooking?was so popular that it ranked first in overall seafood sales.

Considering the high popularity of shrimp, Market Kurly expanded its product range from 180g for single-person households to large 1kg packages. Due to the impact of COVID-19 preventing overseas travel, exotic varieties such as Black Tiger shrimp (Malaysia), red shrimp (Argentina), whiteleg shrimp (Colombia, Peru), and banana shrimp (Australia), as well as unique shrimp like tiger shrimp and medium-sized shrimp, are being offered. Following shrimp, oyster sales increased by 120% year-on-year, ranking second, followed by squid, abalone, and clams.

The popularity of seafood, which previously had a small online purchase ratio, also stood out. Mussel sales increased more than 27 times compared to last year. Products are available that are fully pre-processed and only require light washing, or with the flesh removed, allowing customers to choose according to their cooking needs. Sea cucumber, known as the ginseng of the sea, saw sales increase by 888% year-on-year. Market Kurly delivers sea cucumbers alive by packing them in bags filled with seawater and oxygen. For lobster, sales increased by 268% year-on-year with the launch of products that can be received alive through direct air import from Canada, in addition to frozen products. Other popular items with increased sales include abalone (486%) and clams (249%), and recently, new products such as razor clams, rock oysters, and caviar have been introduced.

Meanwhile, Market Kurly stated that to ensure seafood freshness, auctioned products are stocked on the same day they are auctioned. Products are delivered through a full cold chain.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.