● Chilled fish performance continues to be strong, with value growing ahead of volume as inflation, exchange rates and fewer promotions all drive prices up. A 12% price rise for salmon resulted in 240,000 fewer shoppers. Temporary price reductions (TPRs) are the dominant mechanic, but these have shrunk by one fifth. Added value and convenience are increasingly important. 

● The engine of growth for prawns’ 11.2% growth has been 750,000 more households buying and existing shoppers buying more often.

● Prices are rising across frozen markets. Average prices are only up 20p per kilo but some categories are seeing much higher rises in price. Promotions are high in the category, accounting for 37% of sales – in excess of the average for groceries. 

● The ambient fish market is seeing static volumes, with only rising prices driving value growth in the market. Inflation in salmon is also impacting the canned market with red prices up 4.7% and pink up 8%.

● Own label is stealing share of the canned fish category. The total category saw value sales fall 4.3% to £424.2m, while volumes sank 5.7%. However, own-label sales surged by 11.6% to £148m on the back of a volume sales increase of 10.8%. 

● This is in stark contrast to the continuing decline in sales for Princes, which this year saw value fall by £29.1m (or 25.7%) to £84m, while volumes fell even further, by 28%. It says the brand has been affected by range rationalisation as supermarkets switch to own label, which has “limited the size and variety of branded offerings”. John West has also seen value sales fall, but by a much smaller margin of 1.4% to £168m, with volumes down 2.1%.

● As sales fall, Princes has been unable to maintain low prices, and has posted the highest price increase in the category, of 3.1%. This is explained by a reduction in the amount of space and volume allocated to ambient fish promotions, it says. John West has fared significantly better, and grown share against Princes, despite prices rising 0.8%.

● Own-label prices have also risen, but by just 0.6%. Own-label’s volume growth can in part be explained by its significantly lower price – just £5.70/kilo versus a market average of £6.21.