Seamark

What Seamark does

Seamark plc is a UK-based, family-controlled frozen food processor, importer, and distributor founded in 1976 in Manchester. The company operates a vertically integrated supply chain that spans an own fleet of trawlers, processing factories (notably a 100,000 sq.ft. plant in Chittagong, Bangladesh with 100 tonnes of daily output), 12,500 tons of cold storage capacity at its Manchester headquarters using advanced mobile racking and stock tracking systems, and a refrigerated transport fleet enabling 24-hour delivery to central Europe. Its portfolio covers more than 1,000 SKUs centered on shrimp varieties (Black Tiger, Vannamei, Freshwater, Pink) and has expanded into pangasius, tilapia, seabass, squid, cuttlefish, raw chicken breast fillets, pastry and bakery products, and finger foods.

The company's products are sold B2B to large European supermarket chains (Metro, Makro), wholesalers (Brake Bros), food service operators, leading hotels, leading airlines, and restaurants. Distribution occurs through direct enterprise field sales, wholesale channels, and through its wholly owned subsidiary Restaurant Wholesale, which operates outlets in Manchester and London. Sub-brands include Ibco (UK frozen food supplier for SMBs), Mr Prawn, Tiger, and Lilly. A sister company, Vermilion & Cinnabar, operates a Manchester restaurant and bar at the Sportcity headquarters. The Iqbal Bros Foundation handles charitable activity focused on healthcare, sanitation, and education in the UK and Bangladesh.

Revenue is generated from one-time product sales at negotiated, quote-based prices; no pricing is publicly disclosed. Seamark is privately held by the Ahmed family (Iqbal Ahmed OBE as Chairman and CEO, with brothers Kamal and Bilal), incorporated under English law as a public limited company, with no external private equity or venture funding identified. Certifications (BAP, ETI score 9.9/10, Global Gap, MSC, organic, GDPR) and a Modern Slavery Act statement underpin European tender eligibility.

Name

Seamark

Legal name

Seamark plc

Website

https://seamark.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1976

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Seamark plc is a UK-based, family-owned frozen food processor, importer, and distributor (founded 1976) that supplies 1,000+ SKUs of seafood, poultry, and finger foods to European supermarkets, wholesalers, food service operators, hotels, and airlines via a vertically integrated supply chain anchored by its own trawlers, processing plants, cold storage, and refrigerated fleet.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Frozen Seafood

NAICS

Seafood Product Preparation and Packaging (31171), Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers (42446)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Frozen Meat, Poultry & Seafood Manufacturing (AFAKACAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Meat, Poultry & Seafood Wholesale (AFAIABAF), Temperature-Controlled Import/Export & Cross-Border Wholesale (AFAIAHAL), Meat, Poultry & Seafood Refrigerated Warehousing (TLALABAC), Refrigerated Meat & Seafood (Processed/Packaged) (CRADACAK)

Keywords

• Frozen seafood supply
• Seafood processing
• Frozen food distribution
• Cold chain logistics
• B2B seafood wholesale

Headquarters

HQ city

Manchester

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Frozen Food Product Sales: Seamark generates revenue through the import, processing, and distribution of frozen seafood and food products. The company sells directly to European supermarkets, wholesalers, food service companies, hotels, and airlines. Revenue is derived from product sales across their portfolio of 1000+ items including seafood, poultry, vegetables, dry and finger foods.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Seamark is a vertically integrated processor, exporter and distributor of frozen seafood and food products. The company imports, processes, packages and distributes more than 1000 frozen food items — including Black Tiger, Vannamei, King and Freshwater Shrimp, Pangasius fillets, Tilapia, Seabass, Squid, poultry, and bakery products — to Europe's largest supermarkets, wholesalers, hotels, airlines and restaurants from facilities in the UK and Bangladesh.

Product overview

Seamark is a frozen food processor, exporter and distributor offering a portfolio of over 1000 products including seafood (shrimp varieties, freshwater fish, seabass, squid, cuttlefish), poultry, pastry/bakery products, and finger foods. The core products center on various shrimp species (Black Tiger, Vannamei, Freshwater, Pink) and other seafood. The company operates sub-brands including Ibco, Mr Prawn, Tiger, and Lilly for frozen food distribution, with sister companies Vermilion & Cinnabar (restaurant/bar) and Restaurant Wholesale (wholesale outlets in Manchester and London). The Iqbal Bros Foundation handles charitable initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ibco: One of the UK's most successful frozen food suppliers for small-to-medium sized businesses
• Mr Prawn
• Tiger
• Lilly

Products and services

• Black Tiger Shrimp Black tiger shrimp (Penaeus monodon), one of the most popular shrimp varieties on the Asian, American and European markets, recognised by dark bands on its shell that turn bright red when cooked; processed and distributed as part of Seamark's frozen seafood portfolio.
• Vannamei Shrimp Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) sourced from Vietnam, China and India with a February-to-September season, processed and distributed as part of Seamark's frozen seafood portfolio.
• Freshwater Shrimp Giant freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii), also known as scampi, with a fine delicate flavour, sourced from Bangladesh with seasons from September to November and May to July.
• Pink Shrimp Warm-water pink prawn available in multiple species including Parapenaeus Stylifera, Penaeus Dobsonii and Metapenaeus Indicus, marketed for use in salads and other applications.
• Peeled Shrimp Shrimp products processed and sold in peeled form for convenience, offered across Seamark's head-on, headless and peeled product formats.
• Pangasius Fillets Pangasius fillets offered as part of Seamark's frozen seafood product range for retail and food service customers.
• Tilapia Freshwater tilapia fish product included in Seamark's frozen seafood portfolio.
• Seabass Seabass included in Seamark's range of quality frozen seafood products for retail and food service.
• Squid and Cuttlefish Squid and cuttlefish products processed and distributed as part of Seamark's frozen seafood range.
• Raw Chicken Breast Fillets Raw chicken breast fillets supplied to food service industry customers as part of Seamark's broader frozen food portfolio.
• Pastry and Bakery Products Frozen pastry and bakery products offered alongside seafood for the food service industry.

Quantifiable outcome

• One million prawns processed per hour across facilities
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeamark provides scholarships to outstanding students at Lucy Cavendish College Cambridge University as part of their talent development and community investment initiatives.
• Manchester Metropolitan UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeamark provides scholarships to outstanding students at Manchester Metropolitan University supporting education and talent pipeline development.
• UKBCCI (UK Bangladesh Catalyst of Commerce & Industry)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeamark partners with UKBCCI which promotes business and entrepreneurship to young people in the UK and Bangladesh.
• Ethical Trade Initiative (ETI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeamark Bangladesh was audited by Asia Food Inspection against the ETI code attaining a score of 9.9 out of 10. Seamark's policies are based on ETI conventions and International Labour Organisation standards.
• Best Aquaculture Practice (BAP) CertificationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeamark invested in Bangladesh operations to achieve BAP Certification, a combination of food safety, traceability audits and commitment to environmentally and socially responsible aquaculture.
• Global Gap CertificationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeamark sources from suppliers with Global Gap certification as part of their quality and ethics program.
• Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeamark sources from suppliers with MSC certification for sustainable seafood sourcing.
• Prince of Wales 'Seeing is Believing' CampaignminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeamark is a major supporter of this national programme which encourages local businesses to take an active role in regenerating deprived areas.
• Manchester City Football Club - Healthy Eating PartnershipminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeamark participates in the 'Strike a Balance' healthy eating partnership between Manchester City FC and Manchester Healthy Schools, offering free five-week healthy eating programmes to primary schools.
• Lifeshare CharityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeamark supports the Lifeshare charity for the homeless as part of their community involvement.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Young's Seafood: One of the UK's largest frozen and chilled seafood producers, supplying UK and European retailers and food service with branded and private-label fish/shellfish — closely comparable to Seamark on geography, customer type, and product category.
• Espersen: Danish seafood manufacturer producing value-added, breaded, and frozen seafood products for European retail and food service — directly comparable to Seamark on processing capability, product forms, and European customer base.
• Lyons Seafoods: UK supplier of fresh and frozen seafood and shellfish to retail, wholesale, and food service; directly comparable to Seamark as a UK-based mid-market seafood distributor with overlapping B2B customer segments.

Broad incumbents

• Nomad Foods: European frozen food major (owns Birds Eye and Iglo) with deep retailer relationships across the continent; a broader incumbent operating in the same frozen-food category Seamark serves, but at materially larger scale and brand recognition.
• Thai Union Group: Global seafood processor and distributor with vertically integrated shrimp and frozen-food operations across Asia, Europe, and North America — comparable on vertical integration and frozen seafood processing, though at far greater scale than Seamark.
• Maruha Nichiro: One of the world's largest seafood companies with marine, aquaculture, processed, and frozen-food businesses; comparable as a vertically integrated global seafood player, though serving a broader product mix and geography than Seamark.
• High Liner Foods: North American frozen seafood processor and distributor serving retail and food service with branded and private-label products; comparable on the frozen seafood + retail/foodservice go-to-market motion, though geographically focused on the Americas.
• Princes Group: UK-headquartered packaged food and drink group with a sizable seafood and frozen-foods portfolio supplying European retailers and food service; comparable to Seamark on UK/European B2B grocery and food-service distribution, but with a broader packaged-food scope.
• Clearwater Seafoods: Canadian shellfish and frozen seafood harvester/processor with global distribution; comparable as a vertically integrated frozen seafood player, though focused on wild-caught shellfish rather than Seamark's farmed-shrimp core.
• Findus Group: European frozen-food manufacturer and distributor with strong UK/Iberian retail presence across frozen fish and prepared foods — comparable to Seamark on European frozen-food retail and food-service distribution.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/seamarkgroup
• Facebookfacebook.com/seamarkplcuk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/seamark-plc

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries8 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 Seamark