Pacific American Fish Company (PAFCO)

What Pacific American Fish Company (PAFCO) does

Pacific American Fish Company (PAFCO) is a privately held, family-owned B2B seafood distributor founded by the Huh family and headquartered at 5525 S Santa Fe Ave, Vernon, California. The company offers over 5,000 fresh, frozen, and live seafood items across three sub-brands: Pacific Surf (value-tier), Oceankist (premium all-natural), and Pete's Seafood (chef-developed ready-to-eat meals), serving foodservice operators, retailers, and wholesale buyers in the United States.

PAFCO operates a vertically integrated supply chain spanning international fisheries sourcing, importing, cold-chain warehousing, in-house processing, product development, and last-mile distribution. Core technology consists of conventional seafood processing and supply chain management operations rather than proprietary software or AI-driven platforms. The firm employs 251-500 people and maintains a sales-led go-to-market with direct phone and email contact for B2B orders; pricing is negotiated quote-based and not publicly disclosed.

The company is controlled by the Huh family with four family members in C-suite roles—Peter Huh (President & CEO), Paul Huh (Vice President, production/warehouse/logistics), Jihee Huh (Vice Chair, marketing/strategy), and Chris Huh (CIO)—and has no institutional investors. In February 2026, PAFCO settled with the California Attorney General over allegations of elevated lead and cadmium in 27 seafood products, agreeing to warnings, a $172,000 civil penalty, and adoption of good manufacturing practices.

Name

Pacific American Fish Company (PAFCO)

Legal name

Pacific American Fish Co., Inc.

Website

https://pafco.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1977

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

PAFCO is a family-owned, vertically integrated B2B seafood distributor in Vernon, California, offering over 5,000 fresh, frozen, and live items across three brands (Pacific Surf, Oceankist, Pete's Seafood) to foodservice, retail, and wholesale buyers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Seafood Distribution and Wholesale Supply

NAICS

Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers (424460), Seafood Product Preparation and Packaging (31171)

SIC

Prepared Fresh Or Frozen Fish & Seafoods (2092), Food And Kindred Products (2000)

akta.pro primary industry

Fresh & Frozen Seafood Fillets (Portioned, Skinless/Boneless) (AFANALAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Chilled/Refrigerated Prepared Meat & Seafood Meals (AFANAFAD), Shellfish Value-Added Products (Shucked Oysters, Mussels, Clams; Cooked/Marinated) (AFANALAK)

Keywords

• Seafood wholesale distribution
• Fresh frozen seafood supply
• Seafood processing services
• Ready-to-eat seafood meals
• Premium seafood sourcing

Headquarters

HQ city

Irvine

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Seafood Product Sales: PAFCO generates revenue through the wholesale distribution and sale of seafood products including fresh fish, fillets, specialty seafood items, and ready-to-eat meals. With over 5,000 fresh, frozen and live items, the company operates across the full supply chain from fisheries through processing to final delivery.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Pacific American Fish Company (PAFCO) is a B2B seafood supplier offering the world's most comprehensive line of seafood products with over 5,000 fresh, frozen, and live items distributed through three differentiated sub-brands: Pacific Surf (affordable everyday seafood), Oceankist (premium all-natural products), and Pete's Seafood (chef-developed ready-to-eat meals). The company operates an integrated supply chain spanning global sourcing, importing, warehousing, processing, and distribution to serve foodservice, retail, and wholesale customers.

Product overview

Pacific American Fish Company (PAFCO) is a seafood company offering over 5,000 fresh, frozen, and live seafood items through three main sub-brands: Pacific Surf (affordable seafood selections), Oceankist (high-end, all-natural premium products), and Pete's Seafood (ready-to-eat gourmet meals). The company operates across the entire seafood supply chain, providing services including importing, warehousing, processing, distribution, and product development. PAFCO's product portfolio includes fresh fish and fillets, specialty seafood items, and prepared ready-to-eat meals featuring products like tempura shrimp, sea scallops, black tiger shrimp, baby octopus, crab cakes, cioppino, and various clam and mussel preparations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Pacific Surf: Affordable seafood selections that taste delicious, offering wide variety, affordable pricing, and nutritious products.
• Oceankist
• Pete's Seafood

Products and services

• Pacific Surf Affordable seafood selections offering a wide variety of fresh and frozen options (including tempura shrimp, sea scallops, vannamei shrimp, boom boom shrimp, squid tubes, and seafood mixes) targeted at everyday value-conscious foodservice and retail buyers.
• Oceankist High-end, all-natural seafood product line featuring 100% natural products with no additives or chemicals, including black tiger shrimp, Cajun spice crawfish, razor clam meat, baby octopus, green mussels, sand goby, squid illex, white clams, and rock crab claws sourced globally for premium culinary applications.
• Pete's Seafood Ready-to-eat seafood meal line developed by renowned chefs, offering quick and easy gourmet preparations including garlic butter clams, shrimp ceviche, seafood marinara, Jonah crab cakes, cioppino, and garlic butter mussels targeted at convenience-seeking foodservice and retail customers.
• Seafood Importing International seafood sourcing and importing operations that bring products from fisheries worldwide into the U.S. supply chain for distribution to foodservice, retail, and wholesale buyers.
• Warehousing + Storage Temperature-controlled warehouse and storage facility services that maintain seafood product quality and freshness from arrival through dispatch to buyers.
• Seafood Processing Seafood processing operations including filleting, preparation, breading, and portioning of fresh and frozen products across all three PAFCO sub-brands.
• Seafood Distribution Distribution and delivery services using company-operated logistics and trucks to transport seafood products to foodservice operators, retail customers, and wholesale buyers across the United States.
• Product Development New seafood product development services including chef-led recipe creation, line extensions, and innovation across PAFCO's fresh, frozen, specialty, and ready-to-eat product categories.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Bumble Bee Seafoods: Major branded canned and packaged seafood company with foodservice and retail distribution - competes with PAFCO in shelf-stable and value-added seafood categories at scale.
• Sysco Corporation: Largest U.S. broadline foodservice distributor that includes a substantial fresh/seafood category; competes for PAFCO's foodservice customers at a much larger scale and from a single-vendor convenience position.
• US Foods: Major U.S. broadline foodservice distributor with proprietary seafood offerings - competes with PAFCO for chain and independent restaurant accounts, but at vastly greater scale.
• Chicken of the Sea: Large shelf-stable and frozen seafood brand owned by Thai Union, supplying retail and foodservice with branded canned/frozen seafood - a brand competitor particularly to PAFCO's prepared/ready-to-eat categories.

Direct peers

• Orca Bay Seafoods: Pacific Northwest seafood processor specializing in value-added frozen and prepared products for foodservice and retail - directly comparable to PAFCO's value-added processing capabilities and brand portfolio.
• Trident Seafoods: Large U.S.-based vertically integrated seafood processor and distributor with a broad portfolio across value-added frozen, fresh and prepared seafood products - directly comparable to PAFCO's mix of branded value-added SKUs and broad-line distribution.
• High Liner Foods: Public North American processor of value-added frozen seafood (breaded, battered, prepared) selling into foodservice and retail - directly comparable to PAFCO's Pacific Surf value-tier and Pete's Seafood ready-to-eat lines.
• Ocean Beauty Seafoods: West Coast-based seafood processor and distributor with broad fresh/frozen lines and own-label brands - directly comparable to PAFCO's California footprint, multi-segment brand portfolio, and B2B foodservice/retail distribution.
• Inland Seafood: U.S. seafood processor/distributor with a broad SKU range, value-added processing capabilities, and foodservice relationships - directly comparable to PAFCO's portfolio breadth and vertical integration model.
• Fortune Fish & Gourmet: Mid-market U.S. seafood and specialty foods distributor with processing capability and tiered customer segments - directly comparable to PAFCO's mix of retail, foodservice, and wholesale sales.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pacific American Fish Company (PAFCO)