Eastern Fisheries Inc.

What Eastern Fisheries Inc. does

Eastern Fisheries, Inc. is a privately held, family-operated seafood company founded in 1978 and headquartered in New Bedford, Massachusetts. It is co-owned by Nordic Fisheries and O'Hara Corporation, and through these co-owners operates the largest fleet in the scallop industry. The company is positioned as the world's largest harvester, importer, and processor of scallops, and runs a vertically integrated operation spanning harvesting, processing, and global distribution. Its product portfolio includes four scallop varieties (North Atlantic Sea Scallop, Japanese Scallop, Peruvian Scallop, and China Bay Scallop), Alaskan Flatfish, Pacific Cod, North Atlantic Haddock, and Alaskan Pollock, with multiple products MSC-certified as sustainable.

The business is built on vertical integration and direct-from-source supply, with wholly owned subsidiaries including New Bedford Ice & Cold Storage (ice production and cold storage), Far Eastern Shores Seafood in Dalian and Zhuanghe, China (processing and sales), and Eastern Fisheries Europe in the Netherlands (regional sales and distribution), plus a minority stake in Global Marketing, Inc. for Japanese scallop access. The company moved to a fully automated 80,000 square foot New Bedford processing facility with 2 million pounds of cold storage capacity in 2021, and its boats are monitored 24/7 via a satellite vessel monitoring system supplied by Woods Hole Group. Core technical differentiators are frozen-at-sea processing, vertical quality and cost control, and traceability from source to customer.

Eastern Fisheries generates revenue through one-time sales of seafood products to enterprise customers across three primary B2B segments: large retailers, food service distributors, and wholesalers, both in the United States and internationally. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales with a dedicated sales team organized by channel (retail, commodity, fresh cod, foodservice, international, wholesale) and a specialized buyer portal (easternbuyers.com) targeting foodservice and retail buyers. Pricing is quote-based and negotiated per transaction based on volume, product specifications, and market conditions. The company holds BRC, EU-Approved, USDA, HACCP, BAP, and Trace Register certifications alongside its MSC fishery certifications, which function as prerequisites for supplying top-tier global customers.

Name

Eastern Fisheries Inc.

Legal name

Eastern Fisheries, Inc.

Website

https://easternfisheries.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1978

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Seafood Processing and Distribution

NAICS

Seafood Product Preparation and Packaging (311710), Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers (42446), Other Marine Fishing (114119), Aquaculture (1125)

SIC

Prepared Fresh Or Frozen Fish & Seafoods (2092), Wholesale-Groceries & Related Products (5140), Fishing, Hunting And Trapping (900)

akta.pro primary industry

Shellfish Processing (Shrimp, Crab, Lobster, Mollusks) (AFANADAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Primary Seafood Processing (Heading/Gutting/Deheading; Icing) (AFANADAA), Seafood Wholesale (Fresh & Frozen) (AFAIADAD), Aquaculture Harvest, Processing & Packing (Farmed Finfish/Shellfish; On-Farm Plants) (AFANADAL)

Keywords

• Seafood processing
• Scallop harvesting
• Frozen seafood distribution
• Sustainable fisheries
• B2B seafood supply

Headquarters

HQ city

New Bedford

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Seafood Product Sales: Eastern Fisheries generates revenue through harvesting, importing, and distributing premium seafood products worldwide. The company sells directly to retailers, food service distributors, and wholesalers globally through its vertically integrated operations spanning harvesting, processing, and distribution across multiple facilities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Eastern Fisheries is a vertically integrated seafood harvesting, processing, and distribution company that supplies premium wild-caught and farmed seafood — including scallops, flatfish, Pacific cod, haddock, and Alaskan pollock — to retailers, food service distributors, and wholesalers globally. The company manages the supply chain end-to-end through its own fleet, processing facilities in the U.S., China, the Netherlands, and Japan, and direct-to-buyer sales teams, delivering frozen-at-sea products with full traceability, food safety certifications, and consistent year-round availability.

Product overview

Eastern Fisheries Inc. is a vertically integrated seafood company and the world's largest scallop harvester, importer, and processor. The company offers a portfolio of premium seafood products including four scallop varieties (North Atlantic Sea Scallop, Japanese Scallop, Peruvian Scallop, and China Bay Scallop), Alaskan Flatfish (Yellowfin Sole, Flathead, Rock Sole, and Plaice), Pacific Cod, North Atlantic Haddock, and Alaskan Pollock. The company operates with a vertically integrated business approach managing harvesting, processing, and global distribution through subsidiaries including Far Eastern Shores Seafood (China), Eastern Fisheries Europe (Netherlands), and New Bedford Ice & Cold Storage, while also maintaining a dedicated buyers website for foodservice and retail customers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• North Atlantic Sea Scallop Wild-caught, MSC-certified North Atlantic Sea Scallops (Placopecten Magellanicus) prized for their sweet flavor and firm texture, available in sizes ranging from U-10 to 30-40 per pound, sold to retailers, food service distributors, and wholesalers.
• Japanese Scallop Sweet and tender Japanese scallops (Mizuhopecten yessoensis) sourced through partnership with the largest Japanese scallop export company, offering economical value and uniform sizing for B2B buyers.
• Peruvian Scallop Delicately sweet-flavored Peruvian scallops (Argopecten purpuratus) sourced from Peru, available as aquaculture or diver caught in sizes ranging from 20-30 to 60-80 per pound for retail, food service, and wholesale customers.
• China Bay Scallop Sweet and nutty-flavored bay scallops (Argopecten irradians) sustainably farmed in China, available in sizes ranging from 40/60 to 120/150 per pound for B2B buyers.
• Alaskan Flatfish Frozen-at-sea, wild-caught, MSC-certified Alaskan flatfish including Yellowfin Sole, Flathead, Rock Sole, and Plaice, sold to retailers, food service operators, and wholesalers.
• Pacific Cod MSC-certified, mild-tasting lean white fish (Gadus macrocephalus) from Alaskan waters, frozen at sea to preserve quality, available in fillets (4-32 oz) and loins (2-8 oz portions) for B2B seafood buyers.
• North Atlantic Haddock MSC-certified haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus) from the North Atlantic Barents Sea, frozen at sea within 4 hours of catch, available IQF and refreshed, skin-on/skinless/boneless in fillets, loins, or portions for B2B customers.
• Alaskan Pollock Also known as Walleye Pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus), sustainably harvested in the North Pacific with year-round availability, consistent sizing, and mild taste for B2B customers in retail, food service, and wholesale channels.
• Ice and Cold Storage Services Cold storage services (2000-pallet capacity) and ice production (over 200 tons of ice daily) supplying fishing vessels and seafood processing plants, operated through the New Bedford Ice & Cold Storage division.

Quantifiable outcome

• Frozen at sea within 4 hours of catch (Haddock)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 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

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Global Marketing, Inc.minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Eastern Fisheries acquired a minority interest in Global Marketing, Inc. in 2014, a leading exporter of Japanese scallops. This partnership provides Eastern with direct access to Japanese scallop exports.
• Nordic FisheriescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1968Founded by Roy Enoksen in 1968, Nordic Fisheries is a co-owner of Eastern Fisheries and operates scallop vessels. Nordic Fisheries and O'Hara Corporation together operate the largest fleet in the scallop industry. The first boat was christened F.V. Sea Trek, based in New Bedford, Mass.
• O'Hara CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1907Founded in 1907 by Frank O'Hara, the O'Hara Corporation is a co-owner of Eastern Fisheries. On the West Coast, the company operates catcher-processors in the Alaska groundfish fishery. On the East Coast, the company operates scallop and herring vessels. Owns vessels that harvest Eastern's flatfish.
• Largest Japanese Scallop Export CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEastern's partnership with the largest Japanese scallop export company in Japan provides direct from the source availability of premium Japanese Sea Scallops with economical value and uniform sizing.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves13 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Nissui (Nippon Suisan Kaisha): Large Japanese seafood and food company with global operations across wild-capture, aquaculture, and processed seafood. Overlaps with Eastern in the Japanese scallop supply chain and broader whitefish trading.
• Maruha Nichiro: One of the largest Japanese seafood companies with global harvesting, processing, and distribution across many species. A broader incumbent with similar vertical integration, particularly relevant given Eastern's Japanese scallop supply relationship.
• Thai Union Group: Global seafood giant with a broad portfolio of canned, frozen, and value-added seafood (tuna, shrimp, salmon). Operates globally and overlaps with Eastern in B2B seafood distribution, though focused on different primary species.

Direct peers

• High Liner Foods: Public Canadian seafood company specializing in value-added frozen seafood for retail and foodservice. Comparable in B2B seafood processing and distribution, with a heavier focus on value-added frozen products.
• Ocean Beauty Seafoods: U.S.-based, family-owned seafood processor and distributor with wild-caught salmon and other species. Comparable in being a privately held, multi-species B2B seafood processor serving retail and foodservice customers.
• Clearwater Seafoods: Canadian vertically integrated seafood company with a strong scallop business and wild-caught shellfish portfolio. Direct comparable in species mix, vertical integration, and global distribution, though it is larger and was acquired by Premium Brands in 2021.
• Pacific Seafood Group: Family-owned, vertically integrated U.S. seafood company with harvesting, processing, and distribution across multiple species. Direct comparable in operating model, customer base, and B2B wholesale/retail channel focus.
• Royal Greenland: Vertically integrated seafood company headquartered in Greenland/Denmark, with a significant wild-caught shellfish and whitefish portfolio. Comparable species mix (cold-water shellfish and whitefish) and global B2B distribution model.
• Trident Seafoods: One of the largest vertically integrated seafood companies in North America, with wild-caught, processing, and global distribution across multiple species including whitefish and shellfish. Closest US-based peer by vertical integration model.

Emerging players

• Cooke Aquaculture: Family-owned Canadian seafood company with vertical integration across aquaculture (salmon), wild-capture, and processing/distribution. Partial overlap with Eastern in vertically integrated B2B seafood and species diversification.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCmedVQRND6cIueU6Q1rsTAw
• Facebookfacebook.com/easternfisheries
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/eastern-fisheries-inc.
• Instagraminstagram.com/easternfisheries

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Subsidiaries4 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 Eastern Fisheries Inc.