RISING seafood sales are expected to drive the UK frozen food market to more than £5 billion this year. This is the view of Brian Young, director general of the British Frozen Food Federation, after figures show that the business is growing at an unprecedented rate, with frozen fish leading the way.
Figures from the TNS World Panel show that the frozen fish market is growing at the rate of 8.4% a year, whilst the frozen food industry as a whole shows year on year growth of 5.8%.
We've always known that fish is an essential element in a healthy diet. Birds Eye and Young's are now capitalising on this with their competitive prices and innovative seafood products.
But as these products become more popular, what will be the effect on fish stocks? Are we going to reach a stage where fish is in short supply due to over fishing and instead of being part of our every day menu, it becomes a luxury item?
Research carried out at the University of York shows that quotas set by EU ministers over the past 10 years have exceeded limits proposed by scientists by 45% for cod, 140% for hake, 93.6% for prawns and 14% for plaice.
Defra has put measures in place to halt and ultimately reverse this decline. These measures have included restrictions on cod fishing in the Irish Sea, North Sea and the West of Scotland during the key spring spawning periods alongside cuts in the amount of cod that could be caught in these areas. A recovery plan for Northern Hake stocks has also been introduced.
What alternatives are available if these plans don't work? We could always go for pollack, gurnard, sprats, mullet, flounder and mackerel. This could be an ideal opportunity for forward thinking development chefs to come up with some innovative and mouth-watering recipes to tempt our palates.
Will the major players in the frozen food industry experiment with the alternatives? Could you be tempted by one of the more unusual fish or are you a steadfast cod and chips person?
We'd love to hear your views, and if you have a special recipe you'd like to share, why not post it on our blog...
