Consumer acceptance of seafood innovations: A systematic review on nutritional enhancement, shelf-life extension and minimal processing

Seafood innovation increasingly aims to extend shelf life and enhance nutritional value while maintaining minimal processing. However, consumer acceptance remains uncertain, often due to limited understanding of new processing methods and their associated benefits. Although existing literature has examined seafood consumption and specific aspects such as sustainability or processing, few studies have integrated evidence on consumer responses across three key dimensions of seafood innovation: nutritional enhancement, shelf-life extension, and minimal processing. These dimensions are considered as distinct but potentially overlapping innovation pathways, and the reviewed studies may address one or more of them. This research is conducted as a systematic review of peer-reviewed empirical studies identified through the Scopus database using the PRISMA protocol. A total of 63 studies were selected based on predefined inclusion criteria focused on consumer preferences for seafood products addressing at least one of these three innovation dimensions. Guided by three research questions, the review (i) identifies product-related, consumer-related, and decision-context factors associated with acceptance; (ii) examines how acceptance varies across recurring consumer orientations and cultural contexts; and (iii) synthesizes evidence on consumer responses to nutritional enhancement, shelf-life extension, and minimal processing. A concept-centric approach was used to extract and synthesize findings across disciplines. The synthesis identifies five recurring consumer orientations: health-conscious, sustainability-oriented, price-sensitive/traditional, sensory-oriented, and innovation-averse, each reflecting different combinations of demographic, psychographic, and product-related factors. Product-related innovations, including nutritional enhancement, shelf-life extension, and clean-label formulation, are generally more favourably evaluated when sensory quality and familiarity are maintained. Their acceptance is further shaped by contextual factors, particularly information provision and culturally relevant communication. However, sensory appeal and product familiarity remain important. The review underscores the importance of tailored product-development and communication strategies and cross-cultural understanding for promoting sustainable seafood innovations.