September 9, 2026
Fish and seafood consumption is on the rise, while consumer interest in sustainability continues to grow, with the ASC sustainability label maintaining strong consumer recognition and trust as an independent certification label, according to new global research from the ASC.
ASC’s latest consumer research surveyed 14,795 seafood consumers across 14 countries between February and March 2026, examining seafood purchasing habits and changing attitudes towards seafood sustainability.
The findings were presented during the “Seafood Through the Consumer Lens: What’s Changed?” webinar, hosted by ASC on 8 September, which attracted more than 200 participants from across the seafood sector.
After a decline reported in ASC’s 2024 research, consumers globally now claim a 2% net increase in fish and seafood consumption, with the US recording particularly strong growth at 12%.
in eating (31%) remain the leading reasons for buying seafood, followed by health (27%) and nutrition (19%).
(31%) has overtaken price (27%) as consumers’ top spontaneous purchase consideration, replacing price as the number one factor in the previous survey. Quality ranks third at 15%. In the 2024 survey, price ranked first at 36%, followed by fish type and preparation (18%) and freshness (16%).
is the leading positive consequence consumers associate with both wild-caught and farmed seafood.
Both measures of sustainable consumption included in the research increased by more than 10 percentage points compared with 2024.
However, sustainability is not yet a leading purchase consideration. Just 3% spontaneously mention it when choosing seafood, rising to 10% when consumers are prompted.
The findings suggest sustainability resonates most strongly when connected with tangible benefits consumers value, including health, food safety and quality.
For seafood retailers and brands, the findings point to an opportunity to make sustainability a stronger part of the overall product proposition, rather than communicating it in isolation.
While sustainability is rarely the first consideration consumers spontaneously mention when buying seafood, interest rises significantly when consumers are prompted, and 78% say they would choose a product that is less harmful to people and the environment when choosing between otherwise equal products. And while hygiene is not a primary purchase driver, its growing importance highlights its role as a baseline expectation for consumers when it comes to seafood.
Trust also matters. Consumers are almost twice as likely to trust independent certification schemes for seafood sustainability information (21%) as information from retailers (11%) or seafood brands (11%). This gives businesses an opportunity to use the ASC sustainability label to provide credible reassurance alongside their own sustainability communications.
The research suggests businesses can make sustainability more relevant by connecting it with the attributes consumers already value when buying seafood – including freshness, quality, health and food safety – while using trusted independent certification to reinforce those messages.
For retailers and brands, this could mean making certification more visible across packaging, in-store and online communications; incorporating it into wider seafood campaigns; and using ASC’s sustainability credentials to strengthen customer confidence and differentiate products.
For producers and suppliers, growing consumer interest also reinforces the value of credible certification as a way to meet evolving customer expectations and support the sustainability commitments of retail and brand partners.
“Consumers aren’t choosing seafood based on sustainability alone – freshness, quality, taste and health remain fundamental. But our research shows sustainability can strengthen that overall proposition, particularly when it is connected to the things shoppers already value.
“For retailers and brands, the opportunity is to make those connections clearer. With higher awareness and trust than other farmed seafood labels tested, alongside strong associations with quality and health, the ASC label offers businesses a particularly powerful way to build consumer confidence, differentiate products and reinforce attributes that already matter to seafood shoppers – making the sustainable choice easier.”
Willem de Bruijn, Chief Commercial Officer at ASC
Label awareness and importance has increased by three percentage points compared to 2024. ASC continues to stand out among the farmed seafood certification labels tested:
recall the ASC label, compared with 24% for BAP and 19% for GGN. All labels have increased their recall over the last two years, with ASC increasing the most.
say they trust the ASC label, compared with 47% for BAP and 46% for GGN.
strongly associated ASC with sustainability.
strongly associated ASC with quality.
strongly associated ASC with health.
Find out what the ASC sustainability label on seafood products mean.
Learn MoreRecognition also translates into purchase preference. In pack tests involving 9,195 consumers, ASC-labelled products were rated more trustworthy and more likely to be purchased than the alternative certification labels tested.
“We’re delighted to see ASC maintain and grow its position as the world’s most recognised and trusted farmed seafood certification label. It’s encouraging to see the collective efforts of ASC and our partners helping make certified seafood easier to recognise, understand and choose”
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