Seafood suppliers, buyers and products in Spain

A leading fleet and a dense network of fish auctions

The Spanish fishing fleet had 8,431 vessels in 2024. In 2023, fishing employed 21,172 people in full-time equivalents. The country has 332 registered fishing ports and, in 2025, 201 places of first sale: 101 in the Bay of Biscay and Iberian coast, 71 in the Mediterranean and 29 in the outermost regions.

More than half of landings (53% in 2023) are frozen products. The rest is mainly fresh fish, with a small share of salted, smoked or cooked products. By value, hake and swordfish are the leading species landed.

Key regions and ports

Galicia concentrates much of the activity. Vigo is Spain's leading place of first sale: 33,547 tonnes and €138 million in 2025, mainly monkfish, swordfish and other sharks. A Coruña follows with 28,452 tonnes and €89 million (hake, swordfish and Atlantic horse mackerel). In the south, Huelva stands out for crustaceans: shrimps, warmwater shrimps and deep-water rose shrimps lead its €80 million of first sales.

Galicia is also the capital of mussel farming. According to JACUMAR data published by the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA), the region produced around 181,600 tonnes of mussels (*Mytilus galloprovincialis*) in 2025, worth €124 million, alongside oysters, cockles, clams and queen scallops.

Wholesale is built around the Mercasa network: 20 of its 24 wholesale markets include a fish market. Mercabarna and Mercamadrid are the largest, with €1.50 billion and €1.10 billion of fish sales in 2021.

Aquaculture: seabass, bluefin tuna and mussels

93% of Spanish aquaculture is marine. Suspended culture (rafts and long-lines) accounts for 65% of volume and sea cages for 22%. By value, the main species are European seabass, bluefin tuna and mussels.

What buyers look for

Suppliers and buyers trade seafood in the following usual product forms:

• Fresh and frozen fish: hake, monkfish, swordfish, horse mackerel, seabass, seabream, cod, salmon, tuna.
• Shellfish and crustaceans: shrimp, prawns, red shrimp, langoustine, lobster, spider crab, velvet crab.
• Molluscs: mussels, clams, cockles, oysters, queen scallops, scallops, octopus, squid, cuttlefish.
• Processed products: canned fish and shellfish, salted, smoked, cooked and ready-to-cook products.

The Spanish fish processing industry employed more than 25,000 people in 2023 and had a turnover of about €8 billion in 2024. Its main products are prepared or preserved crustaceans and molluscs, and frozen, dried or salted molluscs (mussels, scallops, cuttlefish, squid and octopus).

Spain in international trade

By value, salmon, squid, octopus, skipjack tuna and shrimps were the main species imported in 2024. Exports are led by tuna, octopus and squid. Morocco, Ecuador, Sweden and Portugal are among the main origins. Italy, Portugal, France and the United States are the main destinations.

The domestic market is strong too: apparent consumption reached 40.7 kg per person in 2023. Hake, cod, salmon, mussels and yellowfin tuna are the most consumed species.

How to find seafood suppliers, buyers and products in Spain

SeaMatch presents 332 Spanish seafood companies listed in the SeaMatch public directory from public sources. SeaMatch serves suppliers, buyers, importers and distributors looking for seafood products. The sector includes: fish wholesalers, seafood distributors, frozen fish suppliers, canneries, fish farmers and exporters. The public directory shows each company's name and city, and with a free account, you can filter companies by region. With a free account, you can contact the companies registered on SeaMatch.

Frequently asked questions