Whitefish
Atlantic cod
Gadus morhua
Barents Sea and Lofoten cod, quota-managed and MSC-certified. The skrei window from January to April is the year’s highest quality.
Norwegian cod is a quota fishery. Volume is set annually by the Joint Norwegian–Russian Fisheries Commission, and quota changes move the price of every downstream product — fresh loins, frozen H&G, stockfish and saltfish alike. A buyer planning a year of supply needs to plan against the quota, not against last year’s price.
Skrei is mature migrating cod landed in the Lofoten and Vesterålen fishery between January and April, and it is a protected designation with its own quality standard: line- or net-caught, bled alive, gutted within hours, packed and tagged. Cod sold outside that window and outside that standard is simply cod, and should be priced as such.
Frozen-at-sea (FAS) H&G from trawlers is a different product again — single-frozen, tightly graded, and the base raw material for most reprocessing in Europe and Asia. Double-frozen material must be declared; failure to do so is the single most common documentation dispute in whitefish.
Season through the year
- January: Peak season
- February: Peak season
- March: Peak season
- April: Peak season
- May: Available
- June: Limited volume
- July: Limited volume
- August: Limited volume
- September: Available
- October: Available
- November: Available
- December: Available
- Peak season
- Available
- Limited volume
- Out of season
Skrei January–April. Coastal and trawl fishery through the year, lightest in summer.
Where this product trades
Commercial specification
- Scientific name
- Gadus morhua
- Production
- Wild-caught · Farmed
- Condition
- Fresh, chilled · Frozen
- Size and weight class
- H&G 1–2.5, 2.5–5, 5+ kg. Loins 150–300, 300–500 g. Fillets 300–500, 500–1000 g.
- Packing
- Fresh in 6–8 kg EPS with ice. Frozen in 20–25 kg blocks or IQF cartons.
- Minimum volume
- One pallet fresh. One 20 ft container frozen (approx. 20 tonnes).
- Product forms
- WR — Whole roundUngutted, as landed
- HG — Headed and guttedHead off, gutted
- FLT — FilletSkin-on or skinless; trim level and pin bone status stated separately
- LOIN — LoinThick back cut, pin-bone free
- PORT — PortionFixed weight, IQF or interleaved
- SPLT — Split / driedStockfish and saltfish formats
- Shelf life
- Fresh 10–12 days on ice. Frozen 18–24 months at −18 °C or colder.
- Temperature
- 0 to +2 °C chilled, −18 °C or colder frozen.
- Certifications available
- MSC Chain of Custody
- BRCGS Food Safety
- IFS Food
- FSSC 22000
- EU establishment approval number
- Health certificate
- Catch certificate (IUU)
- Incoterms 2020 normally quoted
- EXW · FCA · FOB · CFR · CIF · CPT · DAP · DDP
Send the specification and we return standardised offers from verified suppliers — same weight basis, same Incoterm, freight and fees separated out.