Seafood
Scallops
Scallops are sold dry or treated. Treated scallops have been soaked in a phosphate solution which makes them absorb water, so you buy water at scallop prices and they release it in the pan. Which one you are buying is the whole purchase.
How it leaves the country.
- Dry, untreated
- No additive. They sear and brown properly, weigh what they weigh, and cost more per kilo of scallop.
- Treated
- Soaked in a phosphate solution, heavier, whiter, and they release liquid in the pan instead of browning.
- Roe on or roe off
- Different markets want different presentations, and it changes the yield and the price.
- Frozen, IQF
- Individually frozen, which is the practical export form. Glaze percentage is a specification point.
How it is graded.
Treated or not, then size, then how honestly the glaze is declared. Those three settle most of the value.
- Treatment
- Ask directly and get it in writing. Treated scallops are legitimate and they have to be declared, and paying dry prices for treated product is the classic loss.
- Moisture and phosphate
- Testable. If the specification says dry, this is how it is verified rather than by looking.
- Size count
- Pieces per unit weight. It is the primary commercial grade and it should be stated with a tolerance.
- Glaze
- The ice coating on frozen product. Declared as a percentage, and net weight after deglazing is what you actually bought.
- Colour
- Natural scallop is creamy rather than bright white. Very white product is a signal worth asking about.
- Odour and texture
- Clean and firm. Softness and an ammonia note point at handling failures before freezing.
How it is packed.
- IQF in lined cartons
- Individually frozen so the buyer can portion. Block frozen is a different product.
- Glaze declared
- Net weight after deglazing has to be agreed, or the specification is meaningless.
- Reefer with a recorder
- Frozen throughout, with a temperature trace that becomes part of the goods.
- Labelling
- Mollusc allergen, treatment declaration and net weight, set by the destination.
Where it grows.
Eastern Indonesia
Maluku
Fisheries across the eastern archipelago, remote and logistically demanding.
South Sulawesi
Sulawesi
Processing capacity and a route out through Makassar.
East Java
Java
Processing plants working with material from several fisheries.
Documentation, where applicable.
- Health certificate
- Bivalve molluscs face stricter requirements than finfish in several markets, including area classification.1
- Certificate of analysis
- Moisture, phosphate where relevant, microbiology and marine biotoxins on the shipped lot.
- Catch certificate
- Where the destination requires evidence of legal catch.2
- HACCP certificate
- Freezing, glazing and any treatment step are the controls.3
Questions buyers ask.
How do I tell treated from dry?
Cook one. Treated scallops release liquid and steam instead of browning. Before that, ask in writing and specify a moisture test on the shipped lot, because appearance alone is unreliable.
Is treatment dishonest?
Not if it is declared and priced accordingly, and it is a legitimate processing choice. It becomes a problem when treated product is sold as dry, which is where the money is lost.
Why do bivalves face stricter rules?
Because they filter feed and can accumulate biotoxins and pathogens from the water. Several markets require the harvesting area to be classified and monitored, which is a requirement finfish do not carry.
Tell us what you need.
Give us the specification and the destination port. We come back with producer options and an indicative price. Our fee is 5 % of the order value, paid by you and never by the factory.
Sources
- 1TRACES modules and features. European Commission, DG Health and Food Safety. Checked 3 August 2026.
- 2Council Regulation (EC) No 1005/2008 on illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. EUR-Lex. Checked 3 August 2026.
- 3General principles of food hygiene and the HACCP system. Codex Alimentarius, FAO and WHO. Checked 3 August 2026.