Seafood wholesalers in Lille:Boulogne-sur-Mer about 120 km away, the Lomme wholesale market and the Flemish fish auction

01

The Lomme wholesale market: what place for fish?

The Lomme market opened in 1972. In 2019, the Métropole européenne de Lille began its declassification: it has no longer been a MIN (marché d'intérêt national) since the end of 2019, wholesalers can buy their units, and the operating company has become the SEM Euralimentaire. The Métropole then presented it as the second wholesale market in France after Rungis, devoted to other fresh products and to flowers.

Sources: press release of the Métropole européenne de Lille of 4 November 2019, Hello Lille, Réussir (December 2019).

The market remains useful for part of a restaurant's purchases. For fresh seafood, its public documents give no lead: buyers in Lille use other routes.

02

How to source fresh seafood in Lille?

1. A wholesaler who delivers. They buy from several fish merchants, mainly in Boulogne, and from imports, then deliver in the morning. The simplest route for a restaurant that wants a single contact.
2. A Capécure fish merchant, direct. They buy in the Boulogne auction hall or from imports, prepare (fillets, portions) and ship. Fish sold in the morning is generally delivered the next day, depending on the fish merchant and the carrier.
3. A fish merchant in Normandy, for king scallop from Dieppe or Port-en-Bessin in season.
4. A full-service Rungis wholesaler, for species or origins absent from the north.

03

Where does the fish delivered to Lille come from?

Sales and species: FranceAgriMer, sales declared at fish auctions in 2024; Flemish fish auction: Flemish Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (2025 data); Rungis: Semmaris 2023 annual report. Distances: editorial team's calculation, rounded. Delivery: generally the next day, depending on the fish merchant and the carrier.

This table says two things. First, Boulogne dominates: on its own it sells more than the four fish auctions of the French Mediterranean combined, and Capécure processes far more, imports included. Second, the Channel is a king scallop sea: in Dieppe, it makes up 85% of the value sold. A buyer in Lille who wants langoustine or Dover sole looks further afield, towards Brittany or Belgium.

04

Which days and at what time to order?

• The Boulogne fish auction sells Monday to Saturday, at 6 am; in winter, at 5 am on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays (Port Boulogne Calais). Ask your fish merchant what time they load for Lille.
• The order cut-off time depends on each supplier: ask each one, along with the time the fish arrives at your premises. Also ask your Boulogne fish merchant whether they can deliver the same day an order placed early.

05

What is local or in season in Lille?

The months below follow the national rhythm of auction sales (FranceAgriMer monthly curves, 2024), not that of each port.

• Squid (encornet) from Boulogne: the leading species by value of the fish auction; sales peak from October to December.
• Mackerel: 56% of French auction sales go through Boulogne, with two peaks, in May and in September and October.
• King scallop from Boulogne, Dieppe and Port-en-Bessin, from October to mid-May; its fishery is closed from 15 May to 30 September.
• Herring: Boulogne still sells about 400 tonnes a year (Port Boulogne Calais); it is a winter fish, from November to March, with a clear peak in November.
• Whiting, saithe, red mullet: volume species of the Boulogne fish auction.
• Dover sole from the Flemish fish auctions, the leading species by value of the Flemish fishery.
• Channel sea bass: commercial fishing prohibited in February and March (national fisheries committee, 2026-2027 season).

The seasonality calendar details the months of high landings; see also seafood in season in November.

06

How to compare several suppliers in Lille?

The price list guide explains how to read and line up the price lists of several suppliers.