Alternative Seafood rice bowl from Family mart convenience stores.

FamilyMart released a new product, “Daitai (Alternative) Seafood Bowl,” as part of its private brand “Famimaru KITCHEN” on February 6, 2024. This product is available at some stores in the Kanto region, approximately 2300 locations.

“Famimaru KITCHEN” is FamilyMart’s private brand, offering a range of products such as rice balls, bento boxes, sandwiches, pasta, side dishes, and frozen foods. The brand focuses on ensuring quality and safety that can be recommended with confidence to families, catering to everyone from children to the elderly through easily understandable communication. The newly launched “Daitai (Alternative) Seafood Bowl” is also part of this brand.

Here are the features of the new product:

1. **Use of Alternative Ingredients**: Replicating five types of seafood – sea urchin, salmon roe, crab, green onion and toro (fatty portion of eel) – using alternative ingredients. These alternatives include fish mince and konjac, contributing to sustainable development considering the conservation of marine resources.

2. **Price**: Priced at 498 yen including tax.

3. **Consideration for SDGs**: The development of “Daitai (Alternative) Seafood Bowl” incorporates considerations for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Specifically, the aim is to promote sustainable food production and consumption.

4. **Details of Alternative Ingredients**:
– Crab: Imitation crab flavored kamaboko (fish cake).
– Eel: Kamaboko with grilled eel flavor.
– Sea urchin: Surimi (processed fish paste) made from Alaska pollock, and more.
– Salmon roe: Vegetable oils, salmon oil, and others.
– Green onion and toro: Konjac powder, vegetable oils, and fats.

5. **Evaluation**: The evaluation of the product varies depending on the alternative ingredients used. For instance, alternatives for sea urchin and salmon roe receive praise for closely replicating the authentic flavor and texture. However, there are mixed reactions, with some individuals expressing preferences against the alternative for green onion and toro. Overall, while the product gives the impression of a well-constructed seafood bowl, opinions suggest there is still room for improvement in terms of pure taste.

Source: Family mart new product release information