Seafish, the public body that supports the UK seafood industry, has launched its Love Seafood consumer brand platform.
The new brand is driven by a 20-year initiative to reverse the decline in consumption of seafood in the UK. It aims to positively influence attitudes towards and inspire consumers to incorporate more fish and shellfish into their diets.
Love Seafood is being launched with a new website and social media presence. It replaces Fish is the Dish, the previous Seafish consumer brand.
Greg Smith, head of marketing at Seafish, said: “We’re incredibly excited to launch our new Love Seafood brand and see our extensive planning come to fruition. Our previous Fish is the Dish brand was successful and popular but as attitudes towards food and consumer behaviour change, it was time for us to take stock. We’ve relished the opportunity to re-evaluate where seafood is positioned in the minds of consumers, and in securing its long-term future relationship with the nation.
“We’re aiming to inspire a generational shift in attitude towards seafood and tell the story of this incredible industry.”
“Our planning period has given us time to position Love Seafood as a single, powerful message built and owned by the seafood industry. Through creation of our Love Seafood Group, with members representing businesses across the seafood supply chain, we have embedded industry expertise and insight into the fabric of the brand to benefit both businesses and consumers.”
The launch campaign will consist of consumer-facing advertising across radio, TV, print, outdoor and streaming platforms. It will also feature CJ Jackson – a chef, cooking writer and seafood expert.
Love Seafood Social, a week-long programme of online events involving celebrities, chefs, social media influencers and seafood businesses across the country, will start from 12th October.
Research findings
Seafish has invested heavily in the groundwork to create Love Seafood. Informed by an in-depth State of the Nation research project with YouGov in 2018, Seafish gained insight into the barriers people face in relation to seafood consumption across the UK. It then analysed the data against information and trends identified by its in-house market insight team and through Experian consumer data.
The findings showed that opportunities for growth in the sector fell between two unique but broad consumer audiences, and that they would best be engaged through an entirely new consumer-focussed initiative.
A central pillar of Love Seafood will involve showcasing the people and brands within the UK’s seafood industry. Known as Love Seafood Champions, companies and people across the full supply chain are invited to get involved in Love Seafood’s marketing opportunities on an ongoing basis. Further information on becoming a Love Seafood Champion and the benefits for businesses will be revealed soon.
Seafish is also issuing a range of assets for businesses to use across their own websites and social media channels via its online asset bank.
Smith added: “We’re realistic about what we want to achieve and the timescales required for this. We know we won’t change national attitudes overnight, which is why Love Seafood is a long-term initiative. We’re aiming to inspire a generational shift in attitude towards seafood and tell the story of this incredible industry.”
