Europe should not be thought of as one market, but a diversity of many markets with many different consumption habits, said Marie Christine Monfort, senior consultant at Marketing Seafood andSea-Matters.
Potentially the largest seafood market in the world, with consumption of around 13 million metric tons per year, it is easy to think of the EU as one big market, Monfort said.
However it is “a patchwork of different markets” made up of different countries in terms of “sizes, habits and consumption per capita.”
Countries range from consumption per capita of 60 kg per year in Portugal to only 6 kg per capita per year in some eastern European countries, she said. The average consumption in Europe is around 25 kg per person per year.
Consumption habits vary as well from country to country, in terms of species and presentation -- sardines are a big hit in Portugal and not so much in Denmark, she said.
Distribution differs between the countries as well,some countries distribute primarily via restaurants while others via retail.
“Different countries in Europe have different sensitivities to environmental issues as well. Take Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall inthe United Kingdom for example, you should offer him free to France sowe can understand the environmental issues better,” Monfort said.
One thing Monfort did warn about however was that the EU may lose some of its attractiveness if conditions to enter the market keep moving and become “more and more stringent and difficult to reach.”