Regional market
Middle East
Premium hospitality and re-export hubs. Halal documentation and airfreight reliability define the trade.
The Gulf states buy Norwegian seafood for two purposes: high-end hotel and restaurant supply in Dubai, Doha and Riyadh, and re-export through free zones into the wider region. Both run on airfreight, both are unforgiving about arrival temperature after a hot tarmac transfer, and both require halal documentation that travels with the goods rather than following by email.
Most requested species
Atlantic salmon
Salmo salar
Norway’s largest seafood export. Continuous harvest, predictable size distribution, and airfreight to the main Asian and Gulf markets in one to three days.
- Season now
- Peak season
- Origin
- Farmed
- Condition
- Fresh, chilled · Frozen · Smoked
- Forms
- HOG · FLT · LOIN · PORT · VA
Red king crab
Paralithodes camtschaticus
Finnmark king crab, live or frozen clusters. Small quota, high value, and the tightest logistics of anything we handle.
- Season now
- Available
- Origin
- Wild-caught
- Condition
- Live · Frozen
- Forms
- WR · CLST
Saltfish and klippfisk
Gadus morhua / Pollachius virens
Wet-salted and dried cod and saithe for the Portuguese, Brazilian and Caribbean trade. Sold on salt content, whiteness and cut.
- Season now
- Available
- Origin
- Wild-caught
- Condition
- Salted · Dried
- Forms
- FLT · SPLT
Preferred product forms
- Fresh salmon fillet and portions for hospitality
- Frozen king crab for premium retail
- Salted and dried products for regional re-export
Certificate and document requirements
- Halal certificate from a body recognised in the destination
- Health certificate and certificate of origin
- Legalised documents where the importer requires it
Transport modes
- Airfreight from Oslo via a Gulf hub, 1–2 days door to door (12–20 hours airport to airport)
- Reefer container for frozen and cured volume
Typical door-to-door transit as quoted by forwarders, counted from collection at the plant to delivery at the buyer’s address, including export handling and import clearance under normal conditions. Customs holds, inspection sampling and missed connections are not included. Last reviewed 15 September 2026.
- Packing and sizes
- Insulated air cargo packaging with sufficient coolant for tarmac exposure. Arabic labelling where the product reaches retail.
- Key ports
- Oslo · Dubai · Doha · Jeddah · Jebel Ali
- Buyer categories
- Hotel, restaurant and catering distributors
- Premium retail and specialty grocery
- Free-zone traders re-exporting regionally
- Payment risk
- Variable by counterparty rather than by country. We document credit standing before recommending anything other than advance payment or a letter of credit.
- Seasonal opportunity
- Ramadan and the winter hotel season are the two peaks. Summer demand falls sharply as the region empties.
- Working languages
- English · العربية
- Time zone
- AST / GST