Frozen seafood – processing and markets

BVS works with the same freezing company since 2 years now, landbased, applying Europeans norms   SGS, BRC, UKAS, & BAP   (best aquaculture practises). This norms are also aviable in USA, JAPAN, AUSTRALIA.

Today’s freezer trawlers are large, modern and well equipped for highly automated processing and their success is evident in their large share of catch disposition. Modern-day freezing on board started in the early 1980s.

Some land based factories are also modern and technically well equipped. In recent years there have been many mergers of land based freezing plants and this has led to many of the older plants being made redundant.  The plants are supplied by fishing vessels ranging from large wetfish trawlers to small boats fishing with handline.

  

Fillet production
After gutting and washing the fish is iced and kept in chilled store at sea and on shore to preserve raw material quality. In the freezing process the fish is first washed, headed and machine filleted. The fillets are trimmed, portioned, graded for size and packed according to specifications before being quick frozen. Fish is processed immediately after gutting on board freezer trawlers.

       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By-products
In land based processing offcuts and trimmings are minced and blockfrozen. Heads are dried and the skin and skeleton with muscle remnants is processed into fishmeal. In frozen at sea processing, the heads, trimmings and offcuts are often frozen for further processing on land. 

 H/G production
For whole freezing (especially Grouper and Cobia) the fish is headed and gutted (H/G), sorted by size and quick frozen . Heads or part of the heads have a limited market but are mostly discarded.

 

Whole fish production
This applies mainly to land based freezing of small fish, such as capelin and to some extent also herring. The fish is washed, size graded, quick frozen and packed.

 

Shrimp processing
In land based processing, shrimp is washed, cooked briefly, machine peeled, inspected and cleaned further. After brief brining the shrimp is individually quick frozen, glazed with cold potable water for protection, graded for size and packed. In frozen at sea production, the whole shrimp is size graded and quick frozen on board the fishing vessels. Some frozen at sea shrimp is reprocessed by land based factories. In Vietnam, all producers being on the ground, landbased factories get 90% of the market. A by-product of the industry is mainly the shell which is reduced to meal and also more recently used as a raw material for chitosan, a valuable product for the food and cosmetic industry. Here is the process:

 (click on the picture to enlarge)

  

  

  

Markets / export
Markets for frozen products are in North America, Europe and the Far East, especially Japan. Whole-frozen and H/G products are especially popular in Japan and Taiwan while the fillet markets are in Europe and North America. The largest shrimp market is in the UK, while nephrops products are sold mostly in southern Europe. We supply high quality with a competitive price, targeting long terms business relations. All over the world (or nearly). So high quality products + safe transformation = security

SOME FROZEN PREPARED PRODUCTS:            

We get adapted to your needs, all kind of packaging is possible.!

(click to enlarge)