Sector Trend Analysis – Fish and seafood trends in Poland

Introduction

Poland is situated in Central Europe bordering the Baltic Sea to its northern coastline. It has a coastline of 775 kilomtres, including the Szczecin and Vistula lagoons, which account for 0.74% of the total European Union (EU) coastline. Although the fisheries sector represents a minor part of Poland's gross domestic product (GDP), it nevertheless plays an important role in some regions and has an influence on diversification of economic activities in local communities, particularly in rural areas.^{Footnote 1} Furthermore, Poland's fishing sector is divided amongst catches from the Baltic Sea and the long-distance, deep-sea fishing areas of the Southeastern and Northeastern Atlantic.^{Footnote 2}

The Polish fish processing industry is the fourth largest in Europe and supplies EU markets with several processed products, including smoked fish (salmon and trout), canned fish (herring, mackerel, and sprat) and ready-to-eat fish products (that is; salads and marinated fish). Other products include fresh and frozen cod fillets, ready-to-prepare frozen fish fillets (breaded fillets), freshwater and diadromous fish (pike or perch), and fresh and frozen whole fish (trout, sprat). There are 263 processing plants that are eligible to export to the EU. Several hundred additional smaller and often family-run companies sell products to regional markets. In 2017, the fish processing industry employed approximately about 12,000 people.^{Footnote 2}

Polish aquaculture consists of land-based freshwater farms in traditional earth ponds. Production is based on two or three-year cycles^{Footnote 2}. Carp was the biggest aquaculture species in 2017 and farming is carried out in traditional ponds on land-based farms. Poland has about 70,000 hectares of registered carp ponds, the largest in Europe.^{Footnote 2}

Trout farming in Poland began during the end of 1990s. 2017 rainbow trout production was 16,500 metric tonnes (MT), a level which has stagnated in recent years. Trout is intensively farmed in modern production facilities. These trout farms are located in along the Baltic Sea coast and in the Carpathian foothills in southern Poland. Fish are harvested when they reach about 200-450 gram in size.^{Footnote 2}

Trade overview

In 2019, Poland was the sixteenth largest market for fish and seafood in the world with imports valued at US$2.6 billion (611.3 million kgs). Poland experienced a CAGR of 8.7% as imports increased from US$1.9 billion (540.8 million kgs) in 2015.

Canada was the fifteenth largest market in fish and seafood, accounting for 2.1% of the total world market share (representing US$3.3 billion and 545.8 million kgs) in 2019.

Poland had a diverse supply network of fish and seafood products. In 2019, the top three suppliers of fish and seafood to Poland were Sweden (US$786.0 million, 131.4 million kgs), Norway (US$436.0 million, 97.9 million kgs) and Denmark (US$244.7 million and 70.1 million kgs). Canada was Poland's thirty-eighth largest supplier of fish and seafood products, providing US$1.6 million and 1.1 million kgs in 2019.

Poland's total fish and seafood global imports grew by a CAGR of 8.7%, as imports increased from US$1.9 billion in 2015 to US$2.6 billion in 2019. Top imported fish and seafood products to Poland were fresh/chilled Atlantic or Danube salmon, valued at US$1.1 billion, (169.2 million kgs), followed by frozen Alaska Pollack fillets at US$124.9 million (42.2 million kgs), and frozen cod valued at US$107.2 million (24.4 million kgs) in 2019. Poland's imports were mainly raw fish, which is then used by the local processing industry for value addition.

Top five global fish and seafood suppliers by top three products to Poland, in US$ millions, historical

Canada's performance

Canada was Poland's thirty-eighth largest supplier of fish and seafood in 2019. Poland imported US$1.6 million of fish and seafood from Canada in 2019, representing a −34.1% decrease in fish and seafood imports from US$8.5 million registered in 2015. Volume of fish and seafood imports from Canada decreased by −28.7% from 4.3 million kgs in 2015, to 1.1 million kgs in 2019. Top fish and seafood imports from Canada were frozen fish meat n.e.s. (HS: 030499) at US$683.2 thousand (0.7 million kgs), frozen salmonidae at US$369.4 thousand (0.2 million kgs), and frozen fish n.e.s (HS: 030389) at US$0.3 thousand (0.1 million kgs) in 2019.

Market size

The total per capita expenditure on fish and seafood in Poland increased slightly by an estimated value of 0.8% from US$38.90 in 2014 to US$40.20 in 2018. In the forecast period, per capita expenditure on fish and seafood is expected to increase by 4.0% from US$41.90 in 2019 to US$49.00 by 2023.

Regular Polish consumers of fish and seafood, namely those who eat fishery and aquaculture products at least once a month, are mainly from consumers between the age groups of 40-54 and over 55+ years. Young people (ages 15-24 years) are less inclined to consume fish in Poland, as well as, at the EU level. In this category, regular consumers cover 67% of the total consumption of fish and seafood in Poland, the same percentage observed at the EU level.^{Footnote 3}

Fresh fish and seafood from over-the-counter (US$14.7), processed chilled raw packaged fish and seafood (US$7.8) and packaged chilled raw fish and seafood - whole cuts (US$6.5) categorical segments attained the largest per capita expenditure in fish and seafood in 2018 and are expected to remain the largest segments in the forecast period. These segments indicate a general preference shown by Polish consumers for fresh, chilled, or raw packaged whole cuts fish and seafood products over shelf stable and frozen fish and seafood products, in terms of what consumers are purchasing on a per capita basis. According to GlobalData, per capita expenditure in Poland stood at US$36.3 in 2017, which is higher compared to the global level (US$35.7) but lower compared to the regional level (US$36.8).

Alternatively, the total per capita consumption of fish and seafood measured in kilograms has increased slightly by 2.7% from 2014 to 2018(e) and is expected to continue to increase slightly in the forecast period by 1.6%, indicating that the price per kilogram will decrease in both periods. The per capita consumption of fish and seafood in Poland is expected to increase from 7.6 kg in 2017, to 8.6 kg by 2022. It is higher when compared to both the global and regional levels of 5.4 kg and 6.4 kg, respectively, in 2017, according to GlobalData.

Retail sales

With more than 38 million inhabitants in 2019, good economic indicators such as: increases in private consumption and public investments, a booming tourism industry, growth in manufactured goods exports, lower unemployment levels and dual-income households and higher incomes, have contributed to the positive outlook of the Polish food and retail market.

The demand for quality food products is growing and Polish consumers remain price sensitive resulting in a price competitive retail landscape. Polish consumers are loyal to promotional sales rather than specific retail brands. In addition, healthy, organic, local food products, and international cuisine, especially Italian and Asian, are increasing consumer trends that are gaining in popularity. E-grocery and food e-commerce that were less popular trends in the past, are slowly growing trends today. Grocery shops are available in high numbers and are present on most corners, offering convenient hours of operation (most open almost 24 hrs daily except for Sundays?).^{Footnote 4}

There are various fishery and aquaculture product purchasing factors that affect Polish consumers in comparison to EU consumers. For example, a product's appearance (freshness, presentation, etc.) affects both the Polish and EU consumers equally (59%), while a product's cost is considered more by the Polish consumer (58%) versus the EU consumer (52%). Relatedly, 33% of the Polish consumer and 41% of the EU consumer considers the product's origin when purchasing, while a product's ease/level of preparation is considered slightly more relevant when making purchasing decisions by the Polish (22%) versus the EU (23%) consumer.^{Footnote 4}

Poland's retail sales (off-trade) of total fish and seafood remained stable from 2014 to 2018 (CAGR: 3.9%) as retail sales were valued at US$1.5 billion (296.4 million kgs) in 2018 and are expected to increase at a CAGR of 3.7% to US$1.9 billion (318.8 million kgs) by 2023. Volume rates for fish and seafood retail sales have increased by 2.9% historically and is forecast to further increase at a CAGR of 1.4% by 2024.

Competitive landscape

The fish and seafood retail market in Poland was dominated by brand labels (97.6%) in comparison to private labels, which represented 2.4% of the market share in 2018. Both labels (brand and private) represented a 3.9% growth rate in retail sales from US$1,319.5 million in 2014 to US$1,539.2 million in 2018. Homann Group (7.0%), Graal Group (5.6%) and Abramczyk Co (3.8%), were the top brands according to market share in 2018, while 'others' represented a 66.6% market share in 2018. Others also had the largest growth (4.5%) in retail sales from US$859.0 million attained in 2014 to US$1,025.8 million in 2018.

Hypermarkets and supermarkets (79.5%) are the primary distribution channels of fish and seafood in Poland. Food and drink specialists (11.4%) and convenience stores (6.1%) represent other distribution channels for fish and seafood in Poland.

Foodservice

Although Polish consumers typically prefer traditional home cooked meals, time scarcity, combined with rising levels of discretionary income, are factors that are adding to the increasingly more frequent out-of-home meal occasions.^{Footnote 5}

Whilst a global trend towards healthier eating can be seen within the Polish market, there appears to be a significant consumer attitude-behavior gap. As a result, operators have largely focused on making improvements to the quality of existing menus, rather than on the introduction of solely healthy-focused products.^{Footnote 5}

Poland's largest foodservice market is in its capital, Warsaw, which reported a population of approximately 2.6 million as of 2018. However, owing to the saturation of restaurants in the capital operators are increasingly looking to secondary-cities, such as Wroclaw, for future expansion.^{Footnote 6}

Sale values of fish and seafood within Poland's food service industry have experienced a 4.6% growth from US$295.5 million in 2015 to US$353.3 million in 2019. Growth in sales value is forecast to increase, albeit at the lower rate of 2.6%, as sales are expected to attain US$407.3 million by 2024.

Restaurants are Poland's largest subsector with sale values of fish and seafood of US$245.2 million in 2019, and a CAGR of 4.6% from value sales of US$205.2 million in 2015. The subsector will continue to increase by 2.6% in the forecast period as sale values are expected to reach US$282.8 million by 2024. Pubs, clubs and bars was Poland's second largest subsector with sale values of US$61.9 million in 2019, followed by accommodation venues (US$16.1 million), workplaces (US$15.3 million) and on-trade retailers (US$9.0 million). The pub, club and bars subsector had the largest CAGR of 5.0% generated from 2015 to 2019 and is expected to experience the largest CAGR of 3.0% in the forecast period. All subsectors reached measurable growth within the 2015 to 2019 period and are expected to maintain these growth levels, at lower rates, in the forecast period.

New product launch analysis

According to Mintel's Global New Products Database (GNPD), there were 897 fish and fish products (as an ingredient) launched as food and beverage products in Poland between January 2015 and December 2019. Of those 897 fish products released, 893 were food items and 4 were beverages.

In terms of new products launches containing fish and fish products as an ingredient, identified according to 2019 attributes, 2015 and 2016 had the highest product launches, 181 and 222 respectively. The top sub-categories of food products offered were fish products, salads and prepared meals in 2018 and 2019. Top claims (may contain more than one claim per package) were ethical-environmentally friendly products, ethical-sustainable (habitat/resources) and ease of use. Top package types were tray, can and flexible formats and launched primarily as new products and new variety/range extensions. Top ingredients identified were herring, fish and fish products, Atlantic salmon, fish fats and skipjack tuna

Examples of new product launches

Herring Fillets in Tomato and Pepper Sauce

Source: Mintel, 2020

Company	Inletta
Brand	Dr Fisher
Category	Processed fish, meat and egg products
Sub-category	Fish products
Market	Poland
Store name	Dealz
Store type	Supermarket
Date published	December 2019
Launch type	New variety/range extension
Price in US dollars	0.77

Dr Fisher Filety Sledziowe w Sosie Pomidorowo-Paprykowym (Herring Fillets in Tomato and Pepper Sauce) has been added to the range. This sterilised ready-to-eat product retails in a 170 gram pack.

Mackerel Paste

Source: Mintel, 2020

Company	Przetworstwo Rybne Losos
Brand	Losos Ustka
Category	Savoury spreads
Sub-category	Meat pastes and pates
Store name	Auchan
Store type	Mass merchandise/hypermarket
Date published	November 2019
Launch type	New variety/range extension
Price in US dollars	0.63

Losos Ustka Pasta z Makreli (Mackerel Paste) has been added to the range. The sterilised product is ready to eat and retails in a 90 gram pack.

Spicy Salad with Mackerel

Source: Mintel, 2020

Company	Przetworstwo Rybne Losos
Brand	Losos Ustka
Category	Savoury spreads
Sub-category	Meat pastes and pates
Market	Poland
Store name	Aldi
Store type	Supermarket
Date published	May 2019
Launch type	New packaging
Price in US dollars	0.49

Losos Ustka Salatka Pikantna z Makrela (Spicy Salad with Mackerel) has been repackaged. This sterilised product is ready to eat, and retails in a newly designed 135 gram pack.

Stage One Baby Formula Powder

Source: Mintel, 2020

Company	Nutricia
Brand	Nutricia Bebilon Profutura
Category	Baby food
Sub-category	Baby formula (0-6 months)
Market	Poland
Store name	Aptek Dbam o Zdrowie
Store type	Drug store/pharmacy
Date published	October 2018
Launch type	New packaging
Price in US dollars	15.59

Nutricia Bebilon Profutura 1 Mleko Poczatkowe od Urodzenia (Stage One Baby Formula Powder) has been repackaged. The formula suitable for babies from birth contains DHA acid (omega-3), clinically tested and patented GOS/FOS oligosaccharides blend, nucleotides and lactose only. The product can be prepared by mixing three scoops of powder with 90-millilitre water, and retails in a newly designed convenient, resealable 800 grams pack, featuring a spoon and preparation instructions.

Opportunities for Canada

In 2019, Poland was the sixteenth largest market for fish and seafood in the world with imports valued at US$2.6 billion and 611.3 million kgs. Canada was globally the fifteenth largest market in fish and seafood, accounting for 2.1% of the total world market share in 2019 (representing US$3.3 billion and 545.8 million kgs).

Canada was Poland's thirty-eighth largest supplier of fish and seafood in 2019. Top fish and seafood imports from Canada were frozen fish meat n.e.s. (HS: 030499) at US$683.2 thousand (0.7 million kgs), frozen salmonaide (HS: 030319) at US$369.4 thousand (0.2 million kgs), and frozen fish n.e.s. (HS: 030389) at US$0.3 thousand (0.1 million kgs). As such, there remains substantial opportunity for Canada to increase its presence in the Polish market as suppliers of safe and high-quality fish and seafood, and value-added processed fish and seafood products.

The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)

With CETA, 98% of EU tariff lines are now duty-free for Canadian goods, and an additional 1% will be eliminated over seven years. Tariff elimination provides enhanced export opportunities into the EU market for Canadian producers, processors, and manufacturers, as well as for agricultural and agri-food products, fish and seafood, forestry goods, and the full range of industrial goods.

How does CETA benefit Canadian fish and seafood exporters? (Global Affairs Canada, 2020)

• Under CETA, almost 96% of EU tariff lines for fish and seafood products have become duty-free. 100% of these tariff lines will be duty-free after seven years.
• Before the CETA, EU tariffs for fish and seafood averaged 11% and could be as high as 25%.

For more information, please visit Opportunities and Benefits of CETA for Canada's Fish and Seafood Exporters.

In addition, please consult the Canada Tariff Finder to explore tariff information for the CPTPP market, and other countries with which Canada has a free trade agreement.

For more information

The Canadian Trade Commissioner Service:

International Trade Commissioners can provide Canadian industry with on-the-ground expertise regarding market potential, current conditions and local business contacts, and are an excellent point of contact for export advice.

• Find a Trade Commissioner

More agri-food market intelligence:

International agri-food market intelligence
Discover global agriculture and food opportunities, the complete library of Global Analysis reports, market trends and forecasts, and information on Canada's free trade agreements.

Agri-food market intelligence service
Canadian agri-food and seafood businesses can take advantage of a customized service of reports and analysis,and join our email subscription service to have the latest reports delivered directly to their inbox.

For additional information on Seafood Expo Global/Seafood Processing Global, please contact:

Ben Berry, Deputy Director
Trade Show Strategy and Delivery
Agriculture and agri-food Canada
ben.berry@canada.ca

Sector Trend Analysis – Fish and seafood trends in Poland
Global Analysis Report

Prepared by: Laurie Bernardi, International Market Research Analyst

© Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, represented by the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food (2021).

Photo credits
All photographs reproduced in this publication are used by permission of the rights holders.
All images, unless otherwise noted, are copyright Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada.

To join our distribution list or to suggest additional report topics or markets, please contact:

The Government of Canada has prepared this report based on primary and secondary sources of information. Although every effort has been made to ensure that the information is accurate, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) assumes no liability for any actions taken based on the information contained herein.

Reproduction or redistribution of this document, in whole or in part, must include acknowledgement of agriculture and agri-food Canada as the owner of the copyright in the document, through a reference citing AAFC, the title of the document and the year. Where the reproduction or redistribution includes data from this document, it must also include an acknowledgement of the specific data source(s), as noted in this document.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada provides this document and other report services to agriculture and food industry clients free of charge.