Food Service Taps Seafood to Help Combat Rising Costs and Labor Challenges

While restaurateurs will forever remember 2020 as the year of the COVID-19 shutdown and 2021 as the “impaired” opening, 2022 will be noted for its soaring food costs and labor shortages. DataEssentials 2022 restaurant statistics to date show:

• 89% have experienced a rise in food costs, up 22% from 2021

• 79% are or are considering raising menu prices

• 72% are or are considering reducing menu offerings

• 59% have or are considering reducing operational hours

• 80% are struggling or having some difficulty finding staff.

These statistics confirm what most restaurant owners already know: Inflation and supply chain shortages are continuing to put immense pressure on their operations and their margins with no immediate end in sight.

Many food service strategies are needed to combat this perfect storm of high costs, supply chain issues and labor availability, but one product that is helping to offset some of the pressure is quality frozen seafood.  

Below are five ways frozen seafood can help restaurants thrive despite inflationary times.

1. Versatility. Nothing on a restaurant menu provides more diversity than seafood. For starters, seafood is as comfortable as appetizers and in soups as salads and entrees. Second, options such as shrimp, calamari, and firm fish such as branzino lend themselves to various cooking methods—steamed, fried, boiled, broiled, braised, and poached—to name a few and a limitless range of recipes. Finally, seafood is a staple in most global cuisines, from Mexican and Mediterranean to French and Italian and every ethnicity in between. This gives restaurant owners the ability to offer greater menu ethnic diversity without stocking more exotic product.

2. Cost savings. With fresh seafood’s soaring prices and scarcity leading to questionable sources, restaurants looking to serve up tasty dishes at a reasonable price are turning to quality frozen seafood. In addition to greater point-of-purchase affordability, frozen seafood reduces the waste associated with unused fresh seafood. Meanwhile, frozen seafood’s long freezer life adds to the savings, especially in these times of business-volume uncertainty. And most important, IQF and IVP food processing procedures provide a huge bonus to food operators. The Individually Quick Frozen (IQF) preserves taste and freshness while providing pre-portioned packaging that enables chefs to purchase separate and specific products that can easily combine with other ingredients without waste. Individual Vacuum Packaging (IVP) extends the shelf life of food products and eliminates loss of product and contamination.

3. Efficiency. Many frozen seafood options, such as pre-portioned branzino and dusted calamari, can go from freezer to plate in minutes. This enables food operators to quickly provides popular dishes with back-of-the-house scratch quality. Unexpected, large parties that come in just before closing or diners looking for a quick, last-minute bite before seeing a show can be easily accommodated with delicious and efficient fare.

4. Training. Pre-portioned, value add frozen seafood requires minimal training to prepare, getting new hires up and cooking faster while leaving more time to train workers in other critical areas. When staffing is short, it is easier for substitute cooks to master the basics.

5. Selection. Seafood’s versatility allows restaurants to offer a broader and more interesting menu selection than foods with a more limited scope. This enables restaurants to continue offering favorites while adding new menu items at minimal extra cost. The more expansive selection also gives diners the appearance that the eatery is doing well, a perception that can prove invaluable in the restaurant world. Further, seafood appeals to many diners who have stopped or reduced their meat consumption, broadening the restaurant’s customer base, which is especially important during more challenging times.

Inflation and supply shortages won’t last forever and navigating success during these challenging times will demand a wide range of solutions. Deploying high quality frozen seafood, however, is one effective way that restaurants can meet the rising demand for healthy and interesting culinary fare while positively impacting cost, productivity and labor issues.