Evaluation of Consumer Perception of New Aquaculture Products through Applying Focus Group and Check-All-That-Apply Methodologies

A growing interest in healthy diets has increased demand for fish and seafood, with aquaculture playing a crucial role in meeting this need. Developing new aquaculture products can enhance their commercial value and address consumer demand, but it is unclear which products will be well-received. This study aimed to generate ideas for new products derived from sea bream and prawns, and to gather consumer opinions on these ideas, segmented by gender and age. Two methodologies were used: focus groups and Check-All-That-Apply (CATA). In the focus groups, with two sessions per species and 10 participants each, ideas for aquaculture products were generated and categorized as fresh, dehydrated, fermented, marinated, and canned. The CATA technique, applied to 387 individuals, assessed the acceptability of fresh species, yielding average scores of 6.6 for sea bream and 6.8 for prawns. Sea bream was associated with products like fillets and long-shelf-life loins, while prawns were linked to snacks and toppings. In conclusion, the use of tools like focus groups has shown promising results for developing new aquaculture products. CATA analysis indicated that sea bream should be minimally processed with a long shelf life, and prawns should be processed into dehydrated products. Women preferred traditional products, while men favoured innovative options.