Inhospitable times
Sandy Neil
As cases of the deadly coronavirus fell in May, the UK population finally began to emerge tentatively from lockdown. But, two long months after the pandemic had closed all but essential businesses feeding the nation, lurking crises began to bite. The Scottish seafood industry, more robust than many, has not been immune. Its domestic and export sales have suffered, forcing many producers to ask for help. What relief can they expect, and when?
We start, as usual, with a bit of good news. New UK figures released by Seafish’s Sea for Yourself campaign showed how high seafood sales had spiked in supermarkets when lockdown began in March, as shoppers panic-bought in bulk.
Frozen foods such as fish cakes rose 89 per cent, breaded products by 82 per cent, and fish fingers by 79 per cent. After the panic-buying peak, sales of seafood remained 4 per cent higher than before. But while demand for frozen seafood increased, fresh fish counters in most of the UK’s supermarket chains have remained closed.
By May the Scottish seafood sector had been so ‘devastated’ by the virus that Seafood Scotland, the national trade and marketing body for the industry, begged the UK’s biggest retailers to reopen their fish counters, and so help unlock domestic markets.
The industry, Seafood Scotland emphasised, was not small fry: it had landed 450,000 tonnes of sea fish and shellfish from 2000 vessels, and employs 13,000 staff in 150 processing sites. However, the coronavirus had caused a 60 per cent drop in demand. ‘Fishing families and the wider communities that rely on the sector are facing real economic hardship,’ it said.
‘Pre-coronavirus, 80 per cent of Scottish seafood and shellfish was exported, with the remaining 20 per cent destined for UK food service and retail. With the export market at a standstill, the sector is now completely reliant on the UK market to keep afloat, and even within this segment the food service sector is operating at minimal levels.’ Reopening supermarket fresh fish counters, it concluded, was ‘imperative’.
In a letter sent to the leaders of ASDA, Sainsbury’s and Tesco, Donna Fordyce, Head of Seafood Scotland, urged: ‘Once the lockdown was implemented many of the main multiples closed their fish counters – effectively blocking a significant part of our domestic market. We understand why this happened – retail was under enormous pressure at the time, and social distancing felt like a barrier.
‘However, we believe that the operational pressure has eased slightly as retailers and consumers alike become more used to working around social distancing in supermarkets. Morrisons has already proved it can be done.’
When can these struggling seafood producers and their families hope for relief? The country’s largest supermarket chain, Tesco, which has 3,700 stores in the UK and Ireland, told Fish Farmer it
had closest all its counters, including fish, to allow staff to focus on its busiest areas, avoid waste and reduce touch points to keep staff and customers safer. No exact date, a spokesperson said, has been confirmed for reopening.
Sainbury’s, which has 600 supermarkets and 800 convenience stores, said: ‘Our fish counters remain temporarily closed as we continue to focus on serving grocery and other essential items in our busy stores. We will update our customers on any plans to reopen this service, while keeping the safety of our customers and colleagues our highest priority. We continue to support our suppliers during this time by offering a wider range of pre-packaged fish.’
ASDA had closed its fresh fish and meat counters in January months before the coronavirus hit, and declined to comment on Seafood Scotland’s plea to reopen them. Waitrose, which runs 338 UK stores, decided it could safely keep its fresh fish counters open throughout the pandemic.
Marks and Spencer, which runs 729 Simply Food outlets and 314 selling clothes and food according to a BBC report last year, pledged its support for Scotland’s salmon farmers. In a message to tens of thousands of on-line customers, the retail giant said: ‘100 per cent of our farmed salmon is Scottish. That means when you tuck into flaky, succulent salmon, you’re supporting M&S Select Farmers during these challenging times.’
Supermarket sales of Scottish salmon may have risen during lockdown as consumers filled their freezers and did more home cooking, but producers will now be asking whether this growth will continue when the hospitality, restaurant and catering sector re-opens.
On 21st May the Scottish Government published a ‘road map’ outlining the steps they hope to take as COVID-19 lockdown is eased, including when pubs and restaurants could reopen across Scotland.
Phase one, which started on 28th May, allowed people to meet with another household in small numbers outdoors. However, it’s not until phase two that restaurants and pubs can open outdoor spaces – with physical distancing and increased hygiene routines in place. In order to progress to phase two, the virus must be controlled with the R-number consistently below one and the six World Health Organisation key criteria met.
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We are desperate to be back in business, employing people, supporting suppliers” our world class producers and