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Brown crab:professional buying guide, season, size grades, full or empty, live or cooked

Brown crab for the trade: May to September season, 15 cm minimum size, size grades, male or female, full or empty, live or cooked, auction prices.

Updated 8 min readLiveCriée editorial team

Contents
  1. Buying sheet
  2. When to buy brown crab?
  3. Full or empty: how to choose a brown crab?
  4. Live or cooked: which to choose?
  5. Which size grade to choose?
  6. What to replace brown crab with?
  7. What makes the price of brown crab move?
  8. Frequently asked questions

The brown crab (Cancer pagurus), "tourteau" in French, is the large crab of the North-East Atlantic, caught in pots in the English Channel, in Brittany and around the British Isles; it is bought live or cooked, by the kilo or by the piece, and its value depends as much on how full it is as on its weight: a "full" crab ("plein") gives markedly more flesh than an "empty" crab ("vide"), which has just moulted. In France, the permitted trade names are "tourteau" and "crabe tourteau".

Buying sheet

Brown crab
Scientific nameCancer pagurus
Peak seasonMay to September at auction (2024). Low landings from November to March
Closed seasonNo closure period set by the EU regulation; fishing is managed through the minimum size and a limit on detached claws
Minimum sizeFrench vessels: 15 cm carapace width in the English Channel, Atlantic and North Sea (since January 2026). EU rule: 140 mm, or 130 mm in certain areas, notably the Bay of Biscay, the Celtic Sea and the Irish Sea
Size grades on price lists (examples of trade practice, not a standard)Live: 400/600 g, 600/800 g, 800 g/1 kg, 800 g/1.2 kg, male over 2 kg. Cooked: whole by the kilo or by the piece, pasteurised crab meat in pots
Main French fish auctions (2024)347 t sold at auction. Roscoff 46%, Brest 10%, Le Guilvinec 9%, Lorient 7%, Le Croisic 6%, Noirmoutier 4%
OriginsFrance (western Channel, Brittany, northern Bay of Biscay); imported live from Ireland and the United Kingdom
Fishing methodsPots, by inshore boats and by offshore potters equipped with holding tanks
YieldAbout 35% for a 1 to 2 kg male (Seafish); less for an empty crab. Example to be measured on your own deliveries
StorageLive, cool and damp: at least 24 hours out of water in good conditions (Seafish), longer in a holding tank. Cooked: chilled

Minimum size: Regulation (EU) 2019/1241, Annexes V to VII; French order of 28 January 2013 as amended on 6 January 2026. Shares calculated by the editorial team from the sales declared at French fish auctions in 2024 (FranceAgriMer). Most brown crab is sold outside the auctions: in 2013, France landed about 5,800 t (Eurostat, cited by Seafish), while the auctions sell a few hundred tonnes a year. These shares only apply to auction hall sales.

  • 347 tof brown crab sold at French fish auctions in 2024
  • 46%of these sales at Roscoff
  • 15 cmminimum carapace width for French vessels since January 2026

Source: FranceAgriMer, sales declared at fish auctions 2024, report published in June 2025; amended French order of 28 January 2013.

When to buy brown crab?

Brown crab comes to auction mostly from May to September: in 2024, about 50 t a month in May, June and August, against fifteen tonnes or less from November to March. In the United Kingdom, Europe's leading producer, the rhythm is the same: low volume and high prices from November to April, high volume and lower prices from May to October (Seafish).

Demand, however, does not follow this calendar. In France, brown crab is eaten mostly in the second half of the year, with a peak in December, and Seafish notes a mismatch between the condition of the crab and the demand peaks: in summer, when demand is strong, it is often less well filled. For the holidays, landings are low and the price at its highest.

SpeciesJFMAMJJASOND
Brown crablow landingslow landingslow landingsavailablepeak landingspeak landingspeak landingspeak landingspeak landingsavailablelow landingslow landings

National rhythm of auction sales in 2024 (FranceAgriMer): ●● heavy landings, ● present, ○ low. It varies from one port to another, and does not reflect brown crab sold outside the auctions.

Full or empty: how to choose a brown crab?

Brown crab grows by moulting. Just after a moult, it is "empty": soft shell, little flesh, more water, low yield. Seafish notes that the uneven quality of live brown crab comes mainly from irregular filling.

  • The weight: for the same size, a full crab is markedly heavier. It is the best clue on receipt.
  • The shell: hard, not giving way under the thumb. A soft shell signals a recent moult; Seafish recommends removing these animals from stored batches.
  • Liveliness: legs and claws that react, no missing legs. A lifeless crab should be rejected.
  • Male or female: the male has bigger claws, hence more white meat, and a narrow, pointed tail flap (the abdomen folded under the body); the female's is wider. Chefs generally prefer the male (Seafish).

These are trade clues: weigh and pick a few pieces from each batch to know your real yield.

Live or cooked: which to choose?

Live crab costs less per kilo, but it carries two risks: mortality between landing and cooking, and filling, which can only be seen when the crab is opened. Cooked crab costs more, but, once these two risks are counted, it remains competitive; large volumes of whole brown crab are cooked in Brittany and then distributed throughout France (Seafish, 2015). For a seafood platter or a menu where every piece must be consistent, cooked crab secures the service; for crab meat to be picked in the kitchen, large live crab remains the basis.

Which size grade to choose?

Size gradeTypical use
400/600 gindividual cooked piece, seafood plate
600/800 gseafood platter, whole crab to share
800 g/1.2 kgcrab meat to pick, better yield per kilo
Male over 2 kgdisplay piece, plenty of white meat

Examples of use noted by the editorial team, not a standard. Below 15 cm carapace width, a brown crab caught by a French vessel cannot be marketed.

What to replace brown crab with?

UseSubstituteNote
Seafood platter, whole crabSpider crab (araignée de mer)much lower average auction price (€1.83/kg in 2024)
White meat, saladPasteurised brown crab meatconsistent all year round, no filling risk
Prestige pieceEuropean lobstersee the lobster guide

What makes the price of brown crab move?

Average first-sale price at auction, France, 2024
Yearly average priceabout €6.30/kg
Cheapest monthJune, about €4.80/kg
Most expensive monthDecember, about €9.00/kg
Spread between auctions (at least 5% of volumes)from about €5.70/kg at Brest and Roscoff to about €7.70/kg at Le Croisic

Average first-sale price at auction, national, in 2024 (FranceAgriMer, sales declared at fish auctions). Monthly prices read from the curve in the report, as orders of magnitude. The auction price is not the price paid to the fish merchant: processing, transport and margin are added to it.

In 2024, the price followed landings in reverse. From January to April, with about 6 to 23 t sold a month, it hovered around €7 to €8/kg; from May, with around fifty tonnes a month, it fell below €6/kg, down to about €4.80/kg in June, the best-supplied month (about 54 t). It rose again at the end of the year, up to about €9.00/kg in December for around fifteen tonnes. The kilo is therefore cheapest at the start of summer, but not necessarily the flesh: it is also the season when brown crab is often less well filled; for the holidays, it is better to book early. The spread between auctions is real: Roscoff and Brest, which sell the largest volumes, came out about €2/kg below Lorient and Le Croisic; size, filling and local outlets probably explain part of it, without any source making it possible to say how much.

  • The season: price at its lowest in June, at its highest in December, against landings.
  • Filling: a full crab is worth more per kilo than an empty one, because it yields more flesh.
  • Size and sex: large males, rich in white meat, cost more.
  • Live or cooked: cooked crab costs more per kilo, but removes the risk of mortality.
  • The holidays: December demand meets the lowest landings of the year.

Frequently asked questions

When is brown crab in season?

At auction, from May to September, with the largest landings in June. From November to March, it is scarce, and its average auction price peaks in December. In the United Kingdom, Europe's leading producer, the rhythm is similar.

What is the minimum size of a brown crab?

For French vessels, 15 cm carapace width in the English Channel, the Atlantic and the North Sea, since the order of 6 January 2026 (previously 14 cm north of the 48th parallel and 13 cm south of it). The EU rule is 140 mm, or 130 mm in certain areas, including the Bay of Biscay.

How to tell if a brown crab is full?

By weight first: for the same size, a full crab is markedly heavier. Its shell is hard and does not give way under the thumb. A light crab with a soft shell has just moulted and gives little flesh.

Male or female brown crab: which to choose?

The male, with bigger claws, gives more white meat: it is the one kitchens generally prefer. The female can be recognised by its wider tail flap. For a seafood platter, both are fine; for white meat, take males.

How much flesh does a brown crab give?

About 35% of the weight for a 1 to 2 kg male, according to Seafish, and markedly less for an empty crab. Weigh your cooked and picked crabs to set your own yield.

Sources

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