Starfish

What Starfish does

Starfish B.V. is a privately held Dutch seafood processor and wholesale distributor headquartered in Urk, Netherlands — a town described in the company's own materials as the European center of supply and processing of flatfish. The company fillets, processes, stores, and distributes fresh and frozen fish, with its main product lines being plaice and salmon, complemented by a broader portfolio that includes redfish, mackerel, red clam, sole, flounder, dab, dorade, sea bass, and cod. Starfish sells to international seafood distributors and retailers on a B2B, quote-based wholesale basis, and holds four independent sustainability and quality certifications — MSC (Marine Stewardship Council), ASC (Aquaculture Stewardship Council), FFSC, and GLOBAL G.A.P. — covering wild-caught, farmed, and processed fish.

The business operates with 51–100 employees and is structured as a privately held Dutch B.V. with no disclosed parent company, subsidiaries, or external equity funding. Its go-to-market is sales-led and direct: the company maintains a bilingual (Dutch/English) website featuring a downloadable product brochure and direct-contact channels, and emphasizes its location in Urk and its multi-generational family expertise as the basis for buyer trust. Pricing is not publicly disclosed, and the revenue model is characterized as product sales to enterprise buyers — consistent with traditional B2B seafood wholesale rather than subscription, licensing, or platform-based economics.

The underlying technology is conventional for the seafood wholesale sector: physical processing facilities, cold-chain storage, and distribution logistics, with no disclosed proprietary software, automation systems, AI/ML capabilities, mobile applications, or APIs. Strategic positioning rests on three pillars: (i) geographic location in the Urk flatfish cluster, (ii) accumulated operational expertise across generations, and (iii) the stacked certification portfolio that meets the sustainable-sourcing requirements of European and international retail and food-service buyers.

Name

Starfish

Legal name

Starfish B.V.

Website

https://starfish.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Starfish B.V. is a Dutch seafood processor and wholesale distributor based in Urk, supplying fresh and frozen fish — primarily plaice and salmon — to international B2B buyers under MSC, ASC, FFSC, and GLOBAL G.A.P. certifications.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Seafood Processing and Distribution

NAICS

Seafood Product Preparation and Packaging (3117)

SIC

Prepared Fresh Or Frozen Fish & Seafoods (2092)

akta.pro primary industry

Primary Seafood Processing (Heading/Gutting/Deheading; Icing) (AFANADAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Aquaculture Harvest, Processing & Packing (Farmed Finfish/Shellfish; On-Farm Plants) (AFANADAL)

Keywords

• Seafood processing
• Fresh fish supply
• Frozen fish distribution
• Flatfish processing
• Sustainable seafood

Headquarters

HQ city

Urk

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Fish Product Sales: Revenue is generated through the sale of fresh and frozen fish products, including plaice, salmon, and various other seafood varieties to domestic and international buyers.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Starfish processes, fillets, stores, and distributes fresh and frozen seafood — primarily plaice and salmon, plus redfish, mackerel, red clam, sole, flounder, dab, dorade, sea bass, and cod — to international buyers from its headquarters in Urk, the European center of flatfish supply and processing. All products are backed by independent sustainability certifications (MSC, ASC, FFSC) and a GLOBAL G.A.P. quality system covering food safety, traceability, environmental, and worker welfare requirements.

Product overview

Starfish is a Dutch fish processing company based in Urk, the European center of flatfish supply and processing. The company specializes in filleting, processing, storage, and distribution of various types of fish, both fresh and frozen. The primary products are Plaice (Schol) and Salmon (Zalm), with additional offerings including Redfish, Mackerel, Red Clam, Sole, Flounder, Dab, Dorade, Sea Bass, and Cod. Starfish operates as a traditional seafood supplier with FFSC, MSC, and ASC certifications for sustainable fishing practices.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Plaice (Schol)

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)coreOthersStarfish holds MSC certification, an independent global non-profit organization that ensures wild-caught fish is caught and processed on a sustainable basis. This partnership validates Starfish's commitment to sustainable sourcing practices.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Espersen: Danish seafood processor producing frozen and chilled fish products for European retail, foodservice, and industrial customers. Comparable as a value-added seafood manufacturer with international B2B distribution and sustainability focus.
• Cornelis Vrolijk: Dutch family-owned fishing and flatfish processing group headquartered in IJmuiden. Direct competitor in European flatfish supply and processing, with similar multi-generational heritage and a comparable buyer base of international distributors and retailers.
• Morubel: Belgian seafood processor and frozen fish specialist supplying European retail and foodservice. Directly comparable mid-sized processor offering filleting, freezing, and value-added seafood with sustainability certifications, competing for the same European buyer segments.
• Queensberry Seafood & Fish B.V. Netherlands-based seafood supplier specializing in fresh and frozen fish for European retail and foodservice. Directly comparable mid-market Dutch competitor with similar product portfolio (flatfish, salmon, whitefish) and international distribution model.

Regional players

• Mowi ASA: World's largest Atlantic salmon farmer and primary processor headquartered in Norway. Salmon is one of Starfish's two flagship products; Mowi competes in the same European supply chain but as a vertically integrated farmer-processor rather than an independent processor.
• P/F Bakkafrost: Faroese vertically integrated salmon farmer and processor supplying European and Asian markets. Competes with Starfish's salmon offering from a different geographic base, providing a regional reference point for salmon processing economics.

Broad incumbents

• Thai Union Group: One of the world's largest seafood processors (Chicken of the Sea, John West, King Oscar). Operates broadly across canned, frozen, and value-added seafood with global reach; overlaps with Starfish's flatfish and salmon offerings but competes from a vastly larger scale and branded portfolio.
• Nomad Foods: European frozen food giant (Birds Eye, Iglo, Findus) with a major frozen seafood platform. Overlaps with Starfish's frozen fish offerings and competes for European retail frozen seafood shelf space, but from a branded consumer-product vantage rather than commodity processing.
• Maruha Nichiro: Japanese seafood multinational with extensive processing, freezing, and global trading operations. Broad incumbent competing for international seafood supply and processed product markets that overlap with Starfish's flatfish and whitefish portfolio.
• Clearwater Seafoods: Canadian shellfish and seafood harvester/processor (now owned by a consortium including a Mi'kmaq coalition and Premium Brands). Overlaps with Starfish in shellfish processing and value-added seafood; serves as a broader-market incumbent comparable in product mix though not geography.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/starfish-b-v

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Starfish