How much of a role does seafood play in your regular food consumption habits?

The latest survey data from CivicScience finds that just over one-third of U.S. adults report that seafood is a regular part of their diet (excluding ‘other/no opinion’). Nearly half, meanwhile, say they eat seafood occasionally, leaving roughly one in five who never eat it.

Breaking down seafood habits by age reveals stark generational divides. For instance, nearly 3 in 10 Gen Z adults say they never eat any seafood, more than any other adult group. On the other hand, those aged 65+ are by far the most likely to not only eat seafood overall, but to eat it regularly. Gen Xers lead the way as occasional seafood eaters.

But demographics aren’t the only thing that differentiates regular seafood consumers from those who are regulars. Excluding those who selected ‘other/no opinion’, CivicScience data reveal distinct lifestyle and attitudinal differences between regular and non-regular seafood eaters:

• Most essential early morning food: When it comes to the most essential early morning food to start their day, seafood regulars are eight points more likely than non-regulars to say egg (30% to 22%, respectively). Non-seafood regulars, on the other hand, are seven points more likely to say bread/toast (16% to 9%). Coffee, unsurprisingly, is the leader among both seafood regulars and non-regulars (excluding ‘no opinion’).

• Favorite hamburger food pairing: French fries are most common among both groups as the favorite food pairing with a hamburger (with seafood regulars slightly more likely to say this than non-regulars at 55% to 50%). Beyond fries, regular seafood eaters are four points more likely to say onion rings (19% to 15%). Non-seafood regulars, meanwhile, are four points more likely to say tater tots (14% to 10%).

• Planner or spontaneous: Nearly 6 in 10 (58%) of regular seafood eaters say they are more of a planner in their day-to-day decision making, 27 points higher than non-regulars who say the same. Those who don’t regularly eat seafood are more than twice as likely to say they’re more spontaneous (31% to 13%, respectively). They also outpace in reporting that they’re a mix of planned and spontaneous (39% to 30%).

• Loyalty to favorite clothing brand: Fifty-eight percent of those who eat seafood regularly say they’ve been loyal to their favorite clothing brand for 6+ years, compared to 42% of non-seafood regulars. Clothing brand loyalty is a bit fresher among non-regulars, as 37% say they’ve been loyal for no more than three years, outpacing regulars by seven points.

• Listening to music while working: Nearly one-third of regular seafood eaters (32%) say they ‘always’ listen to music as they work, compared to 24% of those who don’t regularly eat seafood (excluding ‘does not apply’). Twenty-six percent of seafood regulars say they never listen while working, six points fewer than non-seafood regulars.

Seafood habits may seem like a niche dietary preference, but the data suggest they’re a surprisingly reliable window into broader lifestyle patterns — one that marketers and food brands would be wise to keep an eye on.

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This article’s data comes solely from CivicScience’s database, which contains nearly 700,000 poll questions and 5 billion consumer insights.