--- With many of the current seafood products trending upwards in pricing, this week we wanted to share a few statistics of the overall center of the plate protein Category. The price of Beef is up 7.4 percent over the same time last year and the estimated average consumption of beef is 53.6 lbs. per person. Pork also is up 5.3 percent now at an all-time high of $3.83/lb in March where each person is estimated to consume 47.1 lbs. Chicken is the largest consumed protein at 85 lbs. per capita and rose an additional 3 percent in price over last year. The seafood category rose by 5.9 percent, with shrimp leading the charge with a 61 percent price surge. According to a recent US Fisheries Report from the NOAA, only 14.4 lbs. of seafood was consumed per capita in 2012. Clearly the gap to seafood in consumption is an excellent opportunity for the category to grow. With the key industry indicators pointing towards new items, quality products and healthy choices, Seafood is the optimal product to fit these industry drivers. The future of protein forecasts for 2014/2015 show continued growth. World meat production is expected to grow by 1.1 percent over 2013 numbers. Poultry claims 43 percent of the total market. Developing countries continue to increase their consumption, which should continue to put overall pricing pressure on these products. For Seafood specifically The economic recovery in traditional markets such as the United States and the European Union is boosting overall demand for fish and fishery products, along with the already firm interest of emerging economies like Brazil and Mexico. This demand, coupled with supply shortages for a number of farmed and wild species, has boosted overall price levels and looks to continue. --- Now onto Pollock. Russian Pollock rose from $1400 to $1490 per metric ton this week. There are very limited inventories and the fishing is almost complete. It does not look promising for this market to drop back down due to these conditions however there will be another fishery in the summer. In Alaska, the Pollock B Season opens in June in the Bering Sea and will be a very limited production. The Gulf of Alaska begins in August, but boats will likely not begin until September due to Pollock roe maturity and cod pricing which starts at the same time.

---Thanks for joining me for the Tradex Foods "3-Minute Market Insight" This is Rob Reierson - “BUY SMART” and “EAT MORE SEAFOOD”

If you have a topic you'd like to hear on upcoming 3-Minute Market Insights, tweet us on Twitter @TradexFoods