Inflation, labor Russian sanctions and other supply chain issues will  continue to affect the retail grocery seafood marketing in the coming months, according to a new study by Anne-Marie Roerink of 210 Analytics.

Out-of-stocks will likely continue to be a problem going forward, extending the problems of 2022, when fresh, frozen and shelf-stable assortment was lower than in 2021, Roerink said.

Thirty-five percent of shoppers encountered out-of-stocks on planned purchases during their last trip to the grocery, she said, citing IRI data. Fresh seafood stocks overall were down 3.4% in the 52 weeks ending Jan. 1, finfish was down 4.9% and frozen shellfish dropped 3.7%.

Most consumers are aware of and concerned about inflation, and seafood is no exception, Roerink said.

Ninety-four percent of consumers say they’re paying somewhat or a lot more for groceries, and 97% of people who noted higher prices are concerned about the level of inflation.

In addition, 30% of American households are having difficulty affording needed groceries, 43% of Americans expect their financial situation to be worse off a year from now 38% of American households say their financial health is strained.

It’s even more pronounced for fresh seafood, she said, leading to growth in value-focused formats in recent years.

That said, seafood inflation has subsided considerably in recent months. In the fourth quarter of 2022, all food prices rose 13.5%, compared to just 2.5% for fresh seafood and 7.7% for frozen seafood.

Looking at 2022 as a whole, food prices climbed 12.4%, fresh seafood 9% and frozen 10.4%.

Still, the seafood price hikes from 2019 to 2022 were significant, and not far behind food prices as a whole. Fresh seafood prices were up 20.9% and frozen up 21.8%, compared to 24.3% for all foods.

Seafood price inflation varies widely by species, according to the 210 Analytics analysis. Category powerhouse salmon averaged $10.43 a pound in 2022, up 11.6% from the year before. Shrimp, at $7.28 per pound, was up 10.3%. Other varieties that saw double-digit spikes last year include catfish (up 17.6%), cod (17.7%) and tilapia (39.3%).

Seafood varieties whose prices declined in 2022 included fresh crab (-8.2%) and fresh lobster (-14%).

Category-wide, finfish prices rose 16%, while shellfish was up just .6% in 2022.

Frozen seafood, which is often marketed with fresh in the perimeter seafood section, saw more consistent increases across multiple varieties.

Frozen finfish prices rose 17.6% in 2022 and shellfish 6.7%. By variety, salmon was up 21.7%, shrimp 7.6%, pollock 14%, tilapia 25% and crab 5.5%.