America Doesn’t Have a Seafood Recipe Problem

 

At the 2025 Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers’ Wild Alaska Pollock Annual Meeting, Aquamar CEO Daryl Gormley posed a deceptively simple question: How can America increase seafood consumption?

Then he quickly eliminated one of the most common explanations.

It’s not because we lack recipes.

He’s right. The internet is overflowing with seafood recipes—from chef-driven inspiration to five-ingredient weeknight meals. Yet despite decades of dietary guidance encouraging Americans to eat more seafood, consumption remains stubbornly low.

So if recipes aren’t the issue, what is?

Daryl’s presentation helped clarify something the seafood industry doesn’t always like to admit: the barriers are practical, emotional, and very real.

The barriers we don’t talk about enough

When you look closely at why seafood underperforms other proteins in American households, the reasons are surprisingly consistent.

People worry about:

• Messing it up
• Wasting money
• Bones and texture
• And, as Daryl rightly pointed out, smell

That last one matters more than we often acknowledge.

For many consumers, the idea of cooking seafood at home comes with concerns about lingering odors—on clothes, in the kitchen, or throughout the house. It’s one of the reasons seafood is often relegated to restaurants or special occasions rather than becoming part of a normal weekly routine.

None of these challenges are solved by publishing more recipes.

They’re solved by reducing risk and friction.

From “special occasion” seafood to everyday seafood

If we want to increase seafood consumption, we need to stop framing seafood as aspirational and start making it practical.

People don’t need seafood to feel impressive. They need it to feel:

• Easy
• Forgiving
• Familiar
• Low-risk

Including low-risk in something as simple—and human—as how their house will smell afterward.

This is where Wild Alaska Pollock stands out.

Alaska Pollock’s quiet advantage: mildness, in every sense

Wild Alaska Pollock is mild by nature—in flavor, texture, and yes, aroma. That’s not a drawback. It’s a competitive advantage.

Surimi seafood: seafood without the smell anxiety

Surimi seafood, including crab-style seafood, may be one of the most effective tools we have to normalize seafood consumption in America.

It addresses multiple barriers at once:

• Fully cooked
• Bone-free
• Long refrigerated shelf life
• Extremely mild aroma
• Easy to use in familiar foods

Just as important, surimi seafood doesn’t trigger the sensory concerns that stop many consumers from reaching for seafood in the first place. It fits seamlessly into sandwiches, salads, wraps, and snacks—without the fear that cooking seafood will “take over” the kitchen.

Surimi seafood doesn’t ask people to overcome their hesitations. It simply lets them eat seafood without thinking about it.

And habit—not aspiration—is what drives long-term consumption.

Alaska Pollock fillets and value-added products: dependable and discreet

The same principle applies to Alaska pollock fillets and value-added Alaska pollock products like fish sticks.

Compared to many other seafood species, Alaska pollock:

• Has a very delicate aroma
• Cooks cleanly and quickly
• Doesn’t overpower a kitchen—or a meal

When consumers know they can cook a protein without lingering smells or surprises, it changes behavior. Alaska pollock tacos, Alaska pollock sandwiches, Alaska pollock fish sticks—these aren’t culinary statements. They’re reliable weeknight solutions.

That reliability is what earns repeat purchases.

A marketing opportunity hiding in plain sight

The seafood industry often markets intensity: bold flavor, richness, indulgence.

But for everyday consumers, mildness can be a feature, not a flaw.

There’s an opportunity—especially for Alaska pollock—to lean into messages like:

• “No guesswork”
• “No overpowering smell”
• “Seafood that fits real life”

Not as a defensive position, but as a confidence builder.

Because when seafood feels easier than chicken—not harder—people choose it more often.

The shift we need to make

Daryl’s presentation reminded us that increasing seafood consumption isn’t about telling people what they should eat.

It’s about making seafood something they feel comfortable eating more often.

That might mean:

• A surimi seafood lunch
• Alaska pollock fish sticks for a family dinner
• A simple Alaska pollock sandwich instead of a burger

One more seafood occasion per week, multiplied across millions of households, would do more for seafood consumption than any new recipe ever could.

A leadership role for Alaska Pollock

The Wild Alaska Pollock industry has a unique opportunity to lead this shift—not by chasing prestige, but by owning something more powerful:

Everyday seafood.

Seafood that’s approachable. Seafood that’s dependable. Seafood that doesn’t ask consumers to overcome fear, mess, or lingering smells.

America doesn’t have a seafood recipe problem.

It has a seafood confidence problem.

Wild Alaska Pollock—through both surimi seafood and fillet products—is uniquely positioned to help solve it.

Daryl asked the right question. Now it’s on all of us to answer it—with honesty, creativity, and a clear-eyed focus on how people actually eat.

 

Craig Morris 

Chief Executive Officer at Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers