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Cod:professional buying guide, salt cod, size grades, origins and prices

Cod for the trade: cabillaud or morue, EU size grades, origins (Iceland, Norway), loin and fillet, yield, substitutes and Rungis wholesale prices.

Updated 7 min readLiveCriée editorial team

Contents
  1. Buying sheet
  2. Cabillaud or morue: what is the difference?
  3. When to buy cod?
  4. Which size grade and which cut to choose?
  5. How to judge freshness?
  6. Which pitfalls to avoid?
  7. What to replace cod with?
  8. What makes the price of cod move?
  9. Frequently asked questions

Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) is a large round fish of the cold waters of the North Atlantic, with white flesh that comes apart in large flakes; sold fresh or frozen, it is called "cabillaud" in French, and salted, it becomes "morue". Almost all the cod sold in France is imported, from Iceland and Norway first: it weighs little in French fish auctions, but together with salmon it makes up 39% of the volumes of fresh fish bought by households.

Buying sheet

Cod
Scientific nameGadus morhua
SeasonAvailable all year round, most of it imported; no marked season at French fish auctions
Closed seasonNo closure of its own in France; fishing under quotas
Minimum size35 cm in the North Sea, the English Channel, the Celtic Sea and the Bay of Biscay; 30 cm in the Skagerrak and the Kattegat
EU size grades1: 7 kg and over; 2: 4 to 7 kg; 3: 2 to 4 kg; 4: 1 to 2 kg; 5: 0.3 to 1 kg
Cuts on price lists (examples of trade practice)Whole gutted, fillet with or without skin, loin ("dos", the thickest part of the fillet), longe, tail, portioned pavés
French fish auctionsLow volumes: cod is not among the main species sold at auction in 2024. Saint-Jean-de-Luz sold 54 t
OriginsNorth-East Atlantic (FAO area 27: Barents Sea, Norway, Iceland, North Sea, Baltic). French imports in 2024: Iceland, Norway, Russia, Denmark first
Fishing methodsBottom trawl, longline, gillnet, line
Yield50% as skin-on fillets for a 750 g cod; 50% as steaks (darnes) for a 3 to 4 kg fish; 30% as trimmed suprêmes for a 4 to 6 kg fish (Seafish); 34% as skinless fillets (FAO)
StorageWhole gutted or as fillets, on melting ice or in a cold room (0 to 2 °C)

Minimum size: Regulation (EU) 2019/1241, Annexes V, VI and VII. Size grades: Regulation (EC) No 2406/96, Annex II. Fish auctions: FranceAgriMer, sales declared at fish auctions in 2024. Imports: FranceAgriMer, foreign trade 2024, all presentations combined.

  • 54,000 tof cod imported into France in 2024, all presentations
  • €8.50/kgaverage import price in 2024
  • 50%skin-on fillets for a 750 g cod

Source: FranceAgriMer, foreign trade in fishery and aquaculture products 2024; Seafish (yield).

Cabillaud or morue: what is the difference?

It is the same fish. In France, the permitted names for Gadus morhua are "morue", "morue commune", "cabillaud" for fresh or frozen fish, and "morue" for salted fish. In other words, "morue" can cover every presentation, but a salted fish cannot be called "cabillaud".

In the kitchen, the difference is real: fresh cod is cooked as it is, salt cod is desalted before use and has neither the same texture nor the same price per kilo. On a price list, check the presentation (fresh, frozen, salted, desalted) before comparing two prices.

When to buy cod?

Cod is available all year round: it arrives mostly through imports, fresh or frozen, from Iceland, Norway, Russia and Denmark first. It therefore has no season in the sense of a French fish auction, and this page does not publish a calendar: no national series of auction sales exists for it. What varies is demand and arrivals: in January 2024, the FAO noted sustained French demand, slow arrivals and a wholesale price in Paris up €0.50/kg over one month.

Quotas count for more than the calendar. Cod is fished under quotas set every year; the same FAO note announced a markedly reduced cod supply and rising prices for 2024.

Which size grade and which cut to choose?

EU size gradeWeightUse (editorial guideline)
4 and 50.3 to 2 kgthin fillets, whole cod in the oven
32 to 4 kgfillets, portions
1 and 24 kg and overthick loins, longes, steaks, suprêmes

The loin ("dos") is the upper, thick part of the fillet, the one that gives even portions; the tail, thinner, cooks faster and costs less. Yield depends on the cut: 50% as skin-on fillets on a 750 g cod, but only 30% as trimmed suprêmes on a large 4 to 6 kg fish (Seafish). For 150 g of suprême per plate, you need to buy 500 g of whole fish.

How to judge freshness?

  • Whole: bulging, clear eye, red gills, shiny and taut skin, firm belly.
  • Fillet: white, pearly flesh, firm to the touch, no water in the tray; the flakes stay tight and do not separate.
  • A mild smell of the sea, never of ammonia.
  • Frozen fish must arrive hard, without thick frost or signs of thawing (see managing deliveries well).

Which pitfalls to avoid?

  • The species behind the name. "Cabillaud" can mean Pacific cod: read the scientific name.
  • The presentation. A price for fresh loin, a price for frozen fillet and a price for salt cod cannot be compared.
  • Glazed weight. On glazed frozen fish, the declared net weight excludes the protective glaze (EU regulation 1169/2011): base your price checks on that weight.
  • Parasites. Like all wild sea fish, cod can carry Anisakidae larvae; those of the genus Pseudoterranova lodge preferably in the muscle (ANSES). Trimming and checking fillets on receipt reduce the risk; cooking eliminates it.

What to replace cod with?

UseSubstituteDifference
Loin, roasted portionPollack, large hakefirmer flesh for pollack, more fragile for hake
Fillet, dish of the daySaithe, haddockgreyer flesh for saithe, more tender for haddock
Brandade, long cookingLingfirm flesh, generally cheaper

What makes the price of cod move?

Cod has no national series of auction prices: the volumes sold at French fish auctions are too small. The public benchmarks are the import price and the wholesale quotations at Rungis.

Price of cod in France, 2024Average price
First sale at auction, Saint-Jean-de-Luz (54 t)about €5.40/kg
Import, all presentations (54,000 t)about €8.50/kg
of which Iceland (14,500 t) / Norway (5,800 t)about €11.30/kg / about €7.80/kg
Wholesale, Rungis, 200 to 300 g filletsabout €14.50/kg
Wholesale, Rungis, cod loinabout €25.70/kg

Year 2024. Auction: FranceAgriMer, sales declared at fish auctions (yearly average first-sale price, a single auction). Import: FranceAgriMer, foreign trade 2024 (customs), an average of very different products (fresh, frozen, salted, whole, fillets). Wholesale: RNM quotations at Rungis, taken up by EUMOFA. None of these prices is the price paid to the fish merchant or the wholesaler: processing, transport and margin are added to it.

The price of cod rises when supply tightens. Between 2022 and 2024, French imports went from 66,000 to 54,000 t, and their average price from €7.70 to €8.50/kg; at Rungis, the 200 to 300 g fillet, quoted at about €10.70/kg in 2016, was worth about €14.50/kg in 2024, i.e. 36% more. The spread between origins should be read with caution: each country's customs average mixes fresh, frozen, salted, whole and fillets, and does not say what is due to the product and what is due to the origin. Always compare like-for-like presentation and cut. Finally, the cut weighs as much as the origin: at Rungis, the loin costs about 1.8 times the price of the fillet, because it is only its thick part.

  • Quotas: a reduced supply pushes prices up, as the FAO announced for 2024.
  • The cut: at Rungis in 2024, the loin was worth about 1.8 times the fillet; yield explains the gap between whole fish and fillet.
  • The presentation: fresh, frozen, salted or desalted are different products, not to be compared with one another.
  • Winter: sustained demand and slower arrivals, as in January 2024 (FAO).

Frequently asked questions

Are cabillaud and morue the same fish?

Yes: it is the same species, Gadus morhua. In France, it is called "cabillaud" when fresh or frozen, and "morue" when salted; "morue" is also permitted for fresh fish.

What is the price of cod?

In 2024, cod imported into France was worth about €8.50/kg on average, all presentations combined (FranceAgriMer). At wholesale level, at Rungis, the 200 to 300 g fillet was quoted at about €14.50/kg on average and the loin at about €25.70/kg (RNM quotations taken up by EUMOFA). The price paid to the supplier adds transport and margin.

Where does the cod sold in France come from?

Mostly from imports: 54,000 t in 2024, from Iceland first, then Norway, Russia and Denmark. French fish auctions only sell small quantities.

What is the fillet yield of cod?

About 50% as skin-on fillets for a 750 g cod, and 30% as trimmed suprêmes for a 4 to 6 kg fish (Seafish); the FAO gives 34% as skinless fillets.

What is cod loin (dos de cabillaud)?

The upper, thick part of the fillet, along the dorsal backbone. It is the most even cut, the one used for restaurant portions, and the most expensive: at Rungis in 2024, about 1.8 times the price of the fillet.

Sources

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