More Seafood Good for Consumers,
So Now Focus is on Sustainability
By MARY DAVIS, QFFI Correspondent

Papilottes are dishes meant to be steamed in their cartons, like Picard’s Salmon with spinach and cherry tomatoes.

Some frozen fish and seafood products sold in French supermarkets and specialty shops cater to environmental concerns, but all cater to good taste – a variety of good tastes, in fact.

France embarked on its second National Nutrition and Health Program (PNNS) last year. Running until 2010, it sets specific goals intended to prevent problems tied to obesity and nutritional deficiencies and to identify and solve nutritional problems, as opposed to the mere nutritional guidelines of the first program.

A wide array of entities including the agro-food industry and distributors are involved in the new program. As would be expected, the PNNS advocates seafood as a staple of a balanced diet. Is what is good for individual people necessarily good for the environment or, in the long run, for the seafood industry itself?

Ocean populations of certain species such as cod, halibut, Atlantic salmon and various pink prawns are said to be sharply declining due to overfishing. Some environmental organizations ask consumers not purchase these species until stocks have had time to replenish themselves.

Along with the World Wildlife Fund, Unilever, former owner of the Iglo brand, created the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) some years ago. It grants a seal to be displayed on packages of fish that were caught in well-managed and sustainable fisheries, according to MSC guidelines.

Quick Frozen Foods International (QFFI) found a statement about the Council on a box of 18 breaded fish sticks from Iglo. The product (2.24 euros for 450 grams) was made from Alaska pollock, a species in abundant supply, and the package bore the seal of the MSC.

Carrefour has its own program of responsible fishing. Certain species of seafood sold under the Carrefour name are caught by line in waters off Iceland or Greenland, where strict rules protect the environment in which fish reproduce. The chain uses a logo of two hands cupped around a fish on its packages of these products to indicate that harvesting took place responsibly.

A shopper checks out a wide assortment of prepared seafood dishes, fish fillets and breaded fish products at this Monop outlet in Paris.

The efforts of Unilever and Carrefour are steps in the right direction. However, neither Iglo nor Carrefour limits itself to seafood products that meet their standards for responsible fishing. The seal of the Marine Stewardship Council does not appear on all of Iglo’s items, and this reporter did not find the Carrefour seal on many Carrefour items. In fact, half of an end cap at an outlet in Montreuil visited during March was devoted to boxes of Atlantic salmon under the Carrefour name – two boneless fillets (300 grams) for 4.40 euros.

The March letter to consumers issued by freezer center chain Picard emphasizes the value of eating fish. One full page, which is headed Equilibrium a volonté (balance by choice), is devoted to Papillote de Fillets de Dorade aux Tomates Confites et Courgettes (bream with preserved tomatoes and zucchini). The papillotte (food to be cooked inside a sealed, heavy-paper wrapper), is presented as the center of one of three suggested menus that can be prepared in ten minutes or less. Furthermore, Picard notes, the papillote is “a complete and balanced dish.”

Another entire page in the periodical is devoted to L’equilibre partagé (balanced equilibrium). One may imagine, Picard says, that it is easier to eat a balanced diet alone than with family or friends. Dishes like Tranches d’espadon et poêlée de légumes grillés demonstrate that this is not necessarily true, as it is pictured at the center of one of three suggested conviviality menus. The customer is to grill fillets of espadon (swordfish), and serve them with a frying pan full of grilled summer vegetables.

French freezer centers, supermarkets and hypermarkets sell a wide variety of frozen unprepared prawns, mussels and other seafood. In this report, however, QFFI concentrates on seafoods with added value, the most basic of which are what the French call “fillets natures.” They represent an entire category of seafood. Small packets with slices of boneless fillet that can be cooked in a microwave oven, in a saucepan of water, or in a frying pan are popular with people living alone and regularly appear in convenience stores.

QFFI picked up a package of two slices of Fillet of Alaska Hake at the Monop at the Gare du Nord in Paris (Monops are small Monoprix stores.). The slices were separately packaged. Labeled with the Monoprix “M,” the fish weighed 200 grams and cost 1.99 euros. Monoprix offers its natural and breaded fillets to help customers maintain their form, the back of the box states.

Nestlé recently introduced nine types of plain fish fillets, each categorized on the box as among the Raffinés (refined or sophisticated), Quotidiens (everyday), or Irrésistibles.

A 200-gram package containing two fillets of bar (bass), among “les Raffinés,” cost 7.88 euros (the equivalent of 39.40 euros a kilogram) in Lyon at a new Marché Plus, part of a chain of small stores belonging to Carrefour. A circled notice on the front of the box states that bar is also known as the loup. The back of the package identifies the species of bass in detail, and notes that the fish in the box was farm-raised in Greece.

At the same time in Lyon, a Carrefour outlet was selling at the same time packages of four slices of cod characterized as among “les Irrésistibles,” and four slices of hake characterized as one of “les Quotidiens.” The cod cost 3.03 euros and the hake, 5.58 euros, for a 400-gram box, marked 100% fillets.

An Intermarché in Paris sold Capitaine Cook brand Coeurs de Fillet de Merlu Blanc du Cap (hearts of fillet of hake). The fish were caught off the coast of South Africa. A box of four wrapped portions weighs 400 grams and costs 3.29 euros. Among other natural fillets on sale at Intermarché under the same name were monkfish and halibut.

Intermarché has a policy of producing many of its own private label products. Furthermore its subsidiary, Seapêche, maintains 22 ships which catch 15,000 tons of fish a year.

Capitaine Cook is Intermarché’s seafood brand. However, the chain has until now been discreet about its private label products (the policy is in the process of changing), and nothing on the packages indicated that “Capitaine Cook” is an Intermarché brand.

In late 2006 Iglo introduced two pairs of fish fillets, marinated in “court bouillon” to heighten the flavor of the offering. “Court bouillon” is bouillon composed of water, white wine, butter, and, in this case, vegetables and herbs. Each fillet is sold in a separate interior packet that may be steamed in a microwave oven. One of the items is Fillets of Dos de Colin (backs of coalfish) and the other, Pavés de Saumon (salmon steaks). A box of two fillets weighs 250 grams and costs 6.84 euros. The back of the salmon boxes indicates that the fish is Atlantic salmon raised in the northeast Atlantic.

Iglo also sells what it calls Pavés de Saumon Atlantique. On the front of the box are three health claims with checks next to them: the fish is rich in Omega-3, rich in vitamins D and B12, and without coloring or preservatives. Like the marinated fish, the salmon is to be steamed in the interior packet in which it is sold, and was raised in the north-east Atlantic. These three packages do not bear Marine Stewardship Council seals.

Coeurs de Filet de Merlu Blanc du Cap (Hearts of Fillet of Hake), sold under the Capitaine Cook label, are sourced from South Africa.

Breaded fish fillets or sticks, another major category of frozen seafood in France, is often sold in forms designed to entice children. Iglo is marketing Petits Trésors, breaded fish in the shape of small fish. Findus sells a carton of twenty Croustibat, which pictures a comic character.

The Findus carton also invites consumers to “Bien manger, bien bouger!” (Eat well, move well!), as it offers buyers a chance to win a week of skiing for four, or one of 25 ski weekends for four. Aimed at families, the game is played by calling a telephone number. Both the front and the back of the box invite consumers to cook lightly, without adding fat. The 500-gram carton sells for around three euros.

Breaded fish fillets have long been a staple. Newer on the market are fish nuggets, which Findus introduced in 2006. A 300-gram box of ten made from hake sells for around 3.65 euros. Iglo also markets nuggets, which it advertises on the box as being crisp mouthfuls, 100% fillet, without coloring or preservatives. They were priced at 3.75 euros for 300 grams at the Marché Plus.

Premier prix (lowest priced) items, a form of distributor products, are reportedly losing sales in French hypermarkets and supermarkets, while standard items are gaining. Nevertheless, in seafood products, particularly breaded sticks, “premier prix” still appears. Thus at Casino, QFFI found 15 Bâttonets de poisson panés Vissticks in a plain blue, yellow, and white package bearing a logo showing the symbol of a euro and a smiling face. The fish is described in the list of ingredients simply as “white.” The box came from Germany, weighs 450 grams and cost only 1.23 euros.

Saumon en Croûte from Maître Océan goes far beyond breaded fish sticks. It is a whole fish wrapped in puff pastry made with pure butter. Large enough for four to six people, it weighs 850 kg and costs 9.78 euros.

Midway between breaded fish fillets and true prepared dishes are a variety of fish fillets accompanied by seasonings, sauce, and sometimes vegetables. The discount chain ED, owned by Carrefour, thus sells Poisson à la Provençale, two sachets to be pierced and cooked for seven minutes in the microwave oven (400 grams for 2.25 euros). The ingredients are fillet of white hake (50%), tomatoes (21%), onions (5%), fennel (3.5%) and squash (3%).

Rival discount chain Leader Price offers in its Fine Ligne assortment for people attempting to lose weight, Fillet de Limande à la Florentine aux épinards et aux tomates confites (dab with spinach and preserved tomatoes). The contents, which can be microwaved or prepared in a traditional oven, provide only 229 calories. The box weighs 300 grams and costs 2.09 euros

Maggi’s offering includes Fillets de Colin d’Alaska à la Bordelaise, cooked with lemon and parsley. The product is without added preservatives and has a melting but crusty covering, delicately heightened with lemon and parsley. Serving two people, the price is 4.09 euros per 400 grams.

Amongst the plethora of seafood, other than fish, that is sold in natural form, is a new product from Michel Adrien, Crevettes vapeur citron romarin. Sixteen prawns, whole except for the removal of their shells, are packed tightly into a tray covered with an “intelligent” paper. The tray is to be placed, with the paper unpierced, in a microwave oven for three minutes and 15 seconds; the paper is designed to open to release steam at the opportune moment.

“Court-bouillon” is bouillon composed of water, white wine, butter, and, in this case, vegetables and herbs. Iglo uses it for steamable items like these salmon portions.

The prawns are coated with a variety of seasonings, dominated, as the name indicates, by lemon and rosemary. The price for 200 grams was 4.74 euros, with a coupon on the box offering a reduction of 50 centimes at the checkout counter.

In an end cap composed of new products at a Leclerc in Achères were packages of stuffed mussels bearing Leclerc’s umbrella label Marque Repère and the name Maître Coquille. The flesh of the mussels rested on open shells filled with a mixture principally composed of butter (70%), parsley (11%), garlic and white wine. For preparation, the mussels were to be removed from their box and placed on a plate in an oven for five to six minutes. The stuffing was tasty, with the flavors of parsley and, in the background, garlic clearly discernable. The 250-gram package cost 4.99 euros.

Knorr has brought out a new Cassolette de Colin et St-Jacques, petits legumes, in its series L’envie d’envie. The ingredients stated in the name (scallops and vegetables) are covered with a sauce of cream and white wine, heightened with parsley.

Fillet de Limande à la Florentine aux épinards et aux tomates confites (dab with spinach and preserved tomatoes) is part of Leader Price’s Fine Ligne range.

Already in the L’envie collection was a Duo de St-Jacques et Crevettes, fines tagliatelles. The cassolettes are prepared by emptying them into a saucepan, then adding a spoonful of water, and cooking for 10 minutes over a low heat while stirring gently from time to time. The price is 5.87 euros.
Prepared dishes with such an emphasis on speedy and simple preparation abound. Casino, for one, has a series Repas Rapide products. The line’s Lasagnes au Saumon, a dish for one, is to be cooked in the container in which it comes and requires seven minutes in a microwave or 25 to 30 minutes in an oven. The weight is 300 grams and the price 2.05 euros.

Low-calorie dishes are also in evidence, represented in particular by Weight Watchers. Among the brand’s offerings is Petit Noix de St. Jacques et tagliatelles, sauce tomate. As so often, with French dishes, the title describes the contents: small scallops with tagliatelles in tomato sauce. The dish is only 3% fat and provides 358 calories.

Poêlées, portionable mixtures sold in sacks and ready to be cooked, are common with and without seafood. Carrefour, for instance, sells under its name a Poêlée de Poissons, a mixture of pasta, vegetables, Atlantic salmon and Alaska pollock, which is to be cooked without thawing for ten minutes in a frying pan or for seven or thirteen minutes, depending on size, in a microwave oven. An 800-gram sack costs 3.65 euros.

Monoprix, also under its own name, sells a Poêlée de Pêcheur, comprised of Alaska pollock and vegetables, 900 grams for 4.50 euros.

Seafood appears in numerous packages of appetizers on toast or pastry. Gimbert Océan has, however, turned out something different. “Mises en bouche à la Crevette Sauvage” (finger food with wild prawns). The package pictures a set of clear, long-handled plastic spoons, the bowl of each of which is filled with a blend of seasonings topped by a prawn. There are ten spoons and five different flavors of stuffing: tomato-basil, garlic and fine herbs, peppers and spices, olives, chick peas and curry. The 150-gram box in an Auchan outlet cost 4.95 euros.

Maggi offers Fillets de Colin d’Alaska à la Bordelaise, cooked with lemon and parsley.

A group of unusual entrées comes from Carrefour, under its label Sélection Carrefour. QFFI sampled 2 Verres Gourmands Saumon Fumé, crème a l’aneth (gourmet glasses of smoked salmon with cream with anise). A box contains two four-sided, rigid sloped, plastic cups, covered with lids of soft plastic and filled with the salmon (41%) topped with the cream, eggs of salmon and eggs of lumpfish. It is intended “for exceptional moments or simply for your own pleasure.” A 160-gram box costs 4.50 euros.

Tipiak has produced a pair of soufflé-like entrées featuring scallops, 2 Moelleux de Saint-Jacques. They can be microwaved in under three minutes or prepared in a traditional oven for 25 minutes. To allay the fears of nervous cooks, the front of the box notes that the soufflés have already risen and will not fall. They are to be served with a sauce, within the box but in its own separate package, which is made with langoustines cooked with fresh cream and muscadet. The product serves up as a light, melt-in-the mouth treat that costs 5.51 euros per 240 grams.

Michel Adrien is big on prawns — sixteen shelled shrimp are packed tightly into a tray covered with an “intelligent” paper to aid microwaving.

Knorr’s enviable Cassolette de Colin et St-Jacques, petits legumes are scallops and vegetables covered with a sauce of cream and white wine, accented with parsley.The 600-gram offering, which takes 10 minutes to prepare, retails for under six euros.

A recent introduction from Maréval in Brittany is 2 Cassolettes aux noix de St Jacques et langoustines façon crumble (little casseroles with scallops and langoustines, crumble style). Crumbles have become very popular in France. In this case the crumble is composed of flour, concentrated butter (20%), grated Swiss cheese, additional grated cheese, basil, sugar and flavoring. It represents 20.8% of the product.

The balance is, as the name suggests, scallops (19%) from Argentina, Uruguay, the USA or Vietnam; langoustines (14.8%), light cream, vegetables, and white wine. A box cost 6.41 euros at a Casino store.

Snails are treated by the French as a category of seafood, and boxes of prepared snails were prominent in frozen food cabinets during March. One of the innovative items is 48-count Burgundy snails without shells, under the name Escargots Willm, from Française de Gastronomie. The snails are sold in a 499-gram box, containing a molded plastic plate with depressions for each piece. They are accompanied by a Burgundy sauce.

Among the other offerings of Française de Gastronomie are 16 Briochettes à l’Escargot. They consist of little cakes topped with snail flesh on butter seasoned with parsley. The cakes themselves represent 53% of the product and the garnishing 47%. Of the latter, 40% is snail meat. The briochettes are sealed in a plastic bag inside a cardboard sleeve. The price at an Intermarché was 4.95 euros for 170 grams.

Escal offers 12 mini puff pastries with snails and extra fine butter, plus garlic and herbs, at 4.75 euros for 140 grams.

Claude Leger is the name on a more traditional offering, featuring 36 prepared snails in their shells. A 202-gram box cost 6.37 euros at Intermarché, the equivalent of 131.33 euros per kilogram. The Monoprix chain, in its Monoprix Gourmet line, offers two sizes of 48 Escargots de Boulogne in a recipe containing Chablis. Medium snails are sold in boxes of 270 grams for 12.30 euros and snails of “belle grosseur,” in 90-gram boxes for 4.57 euros.

Chilled Product Rivals

Frozen seafood still meets vigorous competition in chilled foods, particularly as regards fillets with added ingredients and prepared dishes. New chilled items keep appearing just as do new frozen products. In early 2007 Fleury Michon, for example, launched a line of cooked dishes based on grilled fish without sauce.

Carrefour offers cups of gourmet smoked salmon in cream under its own label.

Even in surimi, the offering is varied. Coraya, for instance, offers Le Rapé de la Mer, grated surimi, and Fleury Michon has lobster-flavored, flat circles, marketed as Medaillons (medals).

Also in competition with frozen foods are sterilized foods hermetically sealed in covered plastic dishes. These products can be conserved at room temperature and have shelf lives of several months. An example of such a dish is Bonneterre’s Saumon Sauce Anise et Riz Blanc (salmon with anise sauce and white rice), prominently displayed near the checkout counter as a new item at an Eau Vive natural foods store.

The Atlantic salmon is farmed in Ireland in deep waters; the other ingredients are organic. Though microwaveable, the dish is best if heated, sealed in its packet, in boiling water. A fork is provided. The product was purchased in early March and was stamped as best if eaten before July 13, 2007.

Cassolettes aux noix de St Jacques et langoustines façon crumble (little casseroles with scallops and langoustines, crumble style) are new from Maréval in the increasingly popular crumble segment.

Frozen foods are well placed to compete with chilled foods, as summed up in a Xerfi report on the distribution of seafood. “The frozens combine practicality and taste and are on average cheaper than chilled dishes,” it states. “The new series from Fleury Michon will be priced at about five euros for 280 grams, which is higher than one would expect to pay for a similar frozen product. Furthermore, frozen products may require little more preparation time or effort than chilled products.”

On the other hand, the room-temperature items appear, in general, to have prices that are as low as or lower than equivalent frozen products. At the moment, the sterilized products are usually shelved in the hypermarkets near canned food offerings, where shoppers may overlook them. Whether they will become popular in the future remains to be seen.

The biggest question for seafood actually concerns all formats equally. Will there be enough raw material to satisfy the demand for added-value products in the future? With the constant rise of farm-raised fish and seafood entering the marketplace, the answer seems to be “Oui.”