We, at Callander McDowell, have always argued that the dumping complaint has never really been about dumping but about the perceived image of Scottish salmon in the market place.

Consumers have been unable to identify any discernable difference between imported and Scottish salmon and as a result have been less willing to pay the higher price that the Scottish industry believe is merited. This failure to generate a price premium for Scottish salmon (with one or two exceptions) is what has primarily motivated the accusations of dumping against Norway.
 
There has always been a belief that salmon from Scotland is a premium product.  The now defunct Scottish Salmon Board said that over 70% of consumers preferred to buy salmon from Scotland as well as paying more for it. However consumers found that they could buy also salmon from Norway and Chile and it tasted just as good.
 
The latest research into food habits appears to confirm that country of origin is not that important to most consumers. The influential Grocer magazine commissioned Harris Interactive to conduct a survey into what consumers are thinking when they fill their shopping trolleys with meat and fish, especially in relation to the battle between price and conscience.
 
Much of the survey focuses on questions that are more relevant to the meat industry and whilst they may provide some indication of the public mood, they are too many to consider here. Instead, we will just concentrate on those questions about fish. The most telling of these is ‘Which of the following factors mostly affects your purchasing decision when buying fish? The choices and responses are as follows:
 
Price 72%
Taste 58%
Country of origin 30%
Production process 22%
Organic 14%
Appearance 1%
Other 3%
I never buy fish 1%
None/Not sure/Not answered 0%
 
The most surprising of these is actually that the appearance of the fish is rated so low. We can only think that most people’s experience of buying fish is that it always looks good therefore this is not an issue for them.
 
Least surprising is that most purchases are clearly dictated by price. Salmon farmers may like high prices but they can act as an obstacle to purchase and if we want to encourage more people to eat salmon, then the price has to be at a level that encourages, not deters consumption. Finally, the survey shows that less than a third of consumers are swayed by country of origin and probably even less will consider to be an issue if the origin is not what they expect.
 
The origin of the food consumers eat is explored further in the next question. How important is it that the fish is of British origin? The question actually included meat where origin seems to be more of an issue yet the responses show that British origin is not the ‘be all and end all’. In fact only a third continues to consider origin to be a factor requiring consideration.
 
Extremely important 6%
Very important 10%
Important 20%
Somewhat important 42%
Not at all important 23%
 
The next question examines consumers’ consciences by asking whether they look out for sustainability logos when buying fish.
 
Yes 27%
No 31%
Not aware of what a sustainability logo is 38%
Not sure 5%
 
This cannot be good news for the MSC with less than a third of consumers even bothering to look for their label. Sustainability is clearly not an issue for most consumers.
 
Finally, the survey asked consumers which fish they actually bought in the last year. It’s not surprising that the most popular fish remain so with cod topping the list. This is despite all the dire warnings about buying cod and the efforts taken to persuade the public to try alternative species.
 
Cod 69%
Salmon 59%
Prawns/shrimp 58%
Haddock 56%
Sardines 34%
Mackerel 33%
Plaice 27%
Mussels 22%
Herring 15%
Bass 13%
Coley 11%
Hake 11%
 
The remaining species are all under 10%
 
Lobster 8%
Halibut 8%
Tuna 5%
Oyster 3%
Pollock 3%
Barramundi 2%
Trout, Scallops, Crab, Squid, Gurnard, Skate, Hoki, Swordfish, Lemon sole, Anchovies, Sole, Monkfish – 1%
Other 7%
I do not buy fish 11%
 
The big surprise is tuna, which given its widespread availability in stores would be expected to be more popular. However, this is not a survey on how much has been sold rather what people buy. What it does show is that the British public is still very traditional when it comes to fish consumption and there will have to be a much greater effort required if these long standing habits are to be changed.

Source: http://www.callandermcdowell.co.uk