A new study shows that there is a willingness to opt for safe and sustainable seafood choices in the Chinese market.
The Global Seafood Alliance (GSA) recently conducted a survey of about 3,400 consumers in China to better understand consumer purchasing decisions and the influence and awareness of the Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) label.
“We’ve been working hard to promote the BAP logo in the Chinese market because we know consumers there are looking for assurances of responsible seafood,” said Steve Hart, GSA’s VP of market development.
“To see our logo recognition at almost 30% speaks to just how important these issues are to Chinese consumers.”
Sustainable choices
A total of 3,403 consumers were surveyed, with about two-thirds of survey respondents being born in 1990 or later.
Almost all respondents agreed that seafood is a healthier option than other animal proteins and more than one-third of respondents currently eat seafood at least twice a week.
Respondents were asked where they purchase seafood most often and the survey revealed that going back to supermarkets and traditional markets now that Covid restrictions have been lifted.
When respondents were asked which issues are most concerning during the production process, food safety ranked first, followed by environmental sustainability.
One key question asked was if respondents were willing to pay more for seafood from producers that were audited by a third-party, with about 71% of respondents saying they care enough to pay at least 1 RMB more to purchase a product with added assurances.
When asked if they recognised the BAP label, about 30% of respondents said that they have seen the logo before and more than half said they are more likely to purchase seafood if the packaging has the BAP label on it.
In addition, when asked which parts of the production chain should be audited for sustainability, about half of respondents answered that the entire aquaculture production chain (processing plant, farm, hatchery and feed mill) should undergo an audit.
