The Eyre Peninsula seafood industry formed Brand Eyre Peninsula in 2006, a collaborative market development program aimed to increase sales and market position in the domestic and export market. Integral to the brand is the education of the species’ attributes to all key stakeholders of the value chain including seafood wholesalers, retailers, food service and media. The results of market development initiatives have been communicated to the owner, head buyer or executive chef of businesses, however, the program failed to support training for key staff such as restaurant front of house and retail counter staff. There is a need for a simple, cost effective training tool due to the high turnover of these positions.

Australian and export clients have consistently requested a “Seafood Flavour Wheel” to assist in menu planning and tasting notes for chefs and sommeliers. Once developed, this tool would be distributed to an initial 500 existing clients to support immediate industry and consumer education. The development of the “Seafood Flavour Wheel” has an extensive level of support from its current client base.

The proposed “Seafood Flavour Wheel” will be a training guide benchmark and has the potential to expand to an Australian guide, inclusive of all seafood species. Specifically, the development of the Eyre Peninsula “Seafood Flavour Wheel” will assist the lack of knowledge and appreciation for the flavours of a target group of seafood species specific to that region.

Equipped with this knowledge, a united industry marketing approach will effectively connect customers with an experience of the unique regional flavour qualities of Eyre Peninsula’s premium seafood. Through this experience, customers will learn to recognise the sensory attributes of Eyre Peninsula seafood and distinguish these products from those originating from other Australian and international regions.