For about a century, StarKist set its sights squarely on tuna, the saltwater fish that has long been a staple of low-cost, high-protein diets. But in recent years, the Pittsburgh-based company has been widening its net.
“Now we’re a convenient, healthy food company,” said Andy Mecs, the company’s vice president of marketing and innovation, told the Pittsburgh Technology Council last week at its CMO Insights luncheon, which looks at marketing innovation.
With a 47% share of the market, StarKist is the No. 1 brand of tuna in the U.S., followed by rival Bumble Bee with a 24% share, and then Chicken of the Sea and other private-label brands.
The tuna market is limited, so the North Shore company has been expanding into other forms of protein — adding salmon in 2015 and chicken in 2018. In addition, it was the first company to develop the single-serve pouch concept for tuna, which gave consumers another option beyond the familiar can that was clunkier and would need to be drained, Mr. Mecs noted.
It’s not unusual for storied names in the food industry to see how they can reinvent themselves as consumer tastes and lifestyles change.
For instance, Kraft Heinz has been working to shake up its image. That food company, dually headquartered in Pittsburgh and Chicago, has added new items like a ketchup with a veggie blend, a mayonnaise/ketchup mashup called Mayochup, and a reformulated macaroni and cheese meant to seem healthier.
In StarKist’s case, one technique it used to tap into what consumers were really saying was to use artificial intelligence and “social listening” to check in 800,000 conversations on Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr and blogs. The goal was to find out things like how they were using their products, what their lifestyle and dietary requirements were, and what more they wanted.
“We saw people talking about thing like, ‘It’s keto, it’s paleo, it has omega-3s, it fits into Weight Watchers.’” Mr. Mecs said.
The focus on pouches has been a key for StarKist, which is owned by Dongwon of South Korea. Canned tuna consumption had been declining for years — plummeting 15% in just the last five years. Meanwhile, sales of pouches are up 65% and flavored pouches are up nearly 500%, according to figures provided by Mr. Mecs.
The company is selling over $300 million worth of tuna annually in pouches — about 40% of StarKist’s business, he said.
It took some tinkering to find the right size, Mr. Mecs said. At first, the packages came in 4.5 ounces, but they were shrunk down to 2.6 ounces.
“By conducting research, we came to understand consumers wanted a smaller portion,” he said. “They were eating it with a salad, a sandwich or crackers and didn’t want leftovers. This also enabled the merchandise to be priced at the 10 for $10 price point.”
The packaging was revamped to highlight tuna’s high protein content and that it was wild caught. That also helped capitalize on healthy snacking trends by other companies advertising products like hummus, drinkable yogurt and jerky.
Going forward, StarKist plans to add other proteins and meatless options.
Business@post-gazette.com
First Published: December 10, 2019, 1:00 p.m.
