U.S. seafood retail sales posted year-over-year growth across fresh, frozen and shelf-stable categories in September, providing a positive signal for seafood producers and marketers despite inflation and pressure on household budgets.

Data from Circana, analyzed by 210 Analytics, showed fresh seafood sales increased 5.8% to $666 million, with sales volume up 4.8%. Frozen seafood sales rose 9.4% to $642 million, while volume increased 1.5%. Shelf-stable seafood sales climbed 14.8% to $305 million, with volume up 2.3%.

Salmon was among the stronger performers. Frozen salmon sales increased 10% in dollar value and 4.4% in volume. Shelf-stable salmon sales rose 22.4% to $28.1 million, with volume growing 12.5%. These results highlight continued consumer demand for salmon products across multiple retail formats.

Other seafood categories also recorded gains. Fresh shrimp volume increased 22.4%, while frozen shrimp sales rose 12.7% in value and 4% in volume. Frozen crab sales increased 18.5% in value, and fresh shellfish benefited from strong gains in both sales and volume.

The broad-based improvement comes as consumers continue to contend with higher food and energy costs. Frozen seafood prices increased 7.6% year over year, while shelf-stable seafood prices rose 12.3%. Analysts also cautioned that comparisons with a relatively weak September 2025 contributed to this year’s growth.

For trout producers, the results offer useful context on the wider seafood marketplace. Growth in fresh and frozen seafood sales, alongside gains in salmon products, suggests opportunities to strengthen retail positioning and highlight the quality, versatility and convenience of farm-raised trout. However, the overall figures cover seafood categories broadly and do not establish specific sales trends for trout.