Skip to content
LiveCriée
FR

Species

Cuttlefish:professional buying guide, season, size grades, pot or trawl

Cuttlefish for the trade: October peak, summer low, EU size categories, Channel and Atlantic fish auctions, pot or trawl, ink, yield and substitutes.

Updated 5 min readLiveCriée editorial team

Contents
  1. Buying sheet
  2. When to buy cuttlefish?
  3. Whole, cleaned, in strips: what to choose?
  4. How to judge the freshness of a cuttlefish?
  5. What to replace cuttlefish with?
  6. What makes the price of cuttlefish move?
  7. Frequently asked questions

The common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis), "seiche" in French, is a cephalopod with a broad, flat body, stiffened by an internal bone (the cuttlebone), caught by trawl in the English Channel and with pots on the Atlantic coast; its thick white flesh is sold whole, cleaned ("blanc de seiche") or in strips, and its ink is sold separately. In 2024, cuttlefish was the seventh species at French fish auctions by value (FranceAgriMer).

Buying sheet

Cuttlefish
Scientific nameSepia officinalis
Peak seasonOctober and November, with a second high point in April. Low in June and July
Closed seasonNo EU closure; no EU quota (Regulation (EU) 2026/249)
Minimum sizeNo EU size
EU size categories1: 500 g and over; 2: 300 to 500 g; 3: 100 to 300 g
Size grades on price listsExamples of trade practice, not a standard: small, medium, large; 100/300 g, 300/500 g, +500 g
Main French fish auctions (2024)5,840 t sold at auction. Boulogne-sur-Mer 16%, Les Sables-d'Olonne 12%, Oléron 10%, Saint-Quay-Portrieux 9%, La Turballe 9%, Erquy 8%, Port-en-Bessin 8%
OriginsFAO area 27: English Channel, Bay of Biscay
Fishing methodsBottom trawl; inshore pots in spring; net
Yield63% edible part (FAO, provisional value): to be measured on your own deliveries
StorageWhole, on ice (0 to 2 °C), without prolonged contact with meltwater

National rhythm of auction sales (FranceAgriMer, 2024); it varies from one port to another. Size categories: Regulation (EC) No 2406/96, Annex II. Tonnage and shares calculated by the editorial team from the sales declared at French fish auctions in 2024 (FranceAgriMer, workbook published on 2 July 2026).

When to buy cuttlefish?

In autumn. In 2024, French fish auctions sold about 850 tonnes of cuttlefish in October and 670 tonnes in November, against 150 to 220 tonnes in June and July. The price does the opposite: at its lowest in January and October, it doubled in June and July. Landings also vary a lot from one year to the next: 8,120 tonnes in 2023, 5,836 tonnes in 2024, 9,525 tonnes in 2015.

In spring, cuttlefish gather near the shore to spawn: inshore fishers then catch them with pots (Ifremer). This is the origin of the "seiche de casier" (pot-caught cuttlefish) on price lists.

Whole, cleaned, in strips: what to choose?

  • Whole: the cheapest per kilo; the bone, the pen, the guts, the skin and the ink sac remain to be removed. The ink is kept for a sauce or pasta.
  • Cleaned ("blanc de seiche"): trimmed mantle, ready to cut; more expensive per kilo, with no loss.
  • In strips or frozen: steady all year round, for frying or stews.

As with all products that need preparing, the only fair comparison is per cleaned kilo, labour included (see the food cost guide).

How to judge the freshness of a cuttlefish?

Shiny, iridescent skin, with clearly visible stripes on the back; white, pearly, firm flesh; liquid, black ink; shiny eyes; a smell of the sea. A pot-caught cuttlefish generally arrives intact; a trawl-caught cuttlefish may be scraped, without the flesh suffering if it is from the same day. Dull skin and yellowing flesh signal a tired product.

What to replace cuttlefish with?

UseSubstituteNote
Plancha, with garlic and parsleySquidfiner flesh, shorter cooking
Stewed, rouille, inkOctopuslonger cooking
FryingFrozen cuttlefish strips, small cuttlefish (supions)steady all year round

What makes the price of cuttlefish move?

Average first-sale price at auction, France, 2024Cuttlefish
Yearly averageabout €4.60/kg
Cheapest monthJanuary: about €3.60/kg
Most expensive monthJuly: about €7.40/kg
Spread between auctionsfrom €4.10/kg (Port-en-Bessin) to €5.20/kg (Boulogne-sur-Mer)

Year 2024, all French fish auctions: average first-sale price at the auction hall, whole cuttlefish (FranceAgriMer, sales declared at fish auctions, workbook published on 2 July 2026). Spread between auctions: among those handling at least 5% of cuttlefish volumes. The auction price is not the price paid to the fish merchant: processing, transport and margin are added to it.

The price of cuttlefish moves against its landings. In June and July 2024, French fish auctions sold only 156 then 221 t of it, at more than €7/kg; in October, at the year's peak (850 t), the price fell back to about €4.20/kg, and it stayed around €4/kg until January, the cheapest month. 2025 shows the same thin, expensive summer, with June the most expensive month. Between the large fish auctions, the spread stays at about €1/kg; Boulogne-sur-Mer, the leading auction, is also the most expensive, without the workbook saying whether this comes from size, gear or outlets.

  • The season: low prices at the autumn peak, high at the June and July low.
  • The year's landings: highly variable, they shift the general price level.
  • The size: large cuttlefish, easier to work, cost more.
  • The presentation: whole or cleaned, it is not the same product.
  • The weather: pots and small trawlers stay in port in heavy weather.

Frequently asked questions

When is cuttlefish in season?

Cuttlefish arrives at French fish auctions all year round, with a peak in October and November and a second high point in spring. It becomes scarce in June and July, when its price is highest.

What is the difference between cuttlefish and squid?

Cuttlefish has a broad, flat body, an internal bone and thick flesh; squid has a slim, elongated body, a simple transparent pen and more tender flesh. Both are cooked quickly, or for a long time.

How much flesh does a whole cuttlefish give?

FAO gives about 63% edible part, a provisional value. The real yield depends on size and trimming: weigh your cuttlefish whole and then cleaned over several deliveries.

What is the auction price of cuttlefish in France?

In 2024, about €4.60/kg on average at first sale in French fish auctions, from about €3.60/kg in January to about €7.40/kg in July (FranceAgriMer). This is the price of whole cuttlefish: the price paid to the fish merchant adds processing, transport and margin, and cleaned cuttlefish (blanc de seiche) is compared per cleaned kilo.

What is "blanc de seiche"?

The mantle of the cuttlefish, cleaned, with the bone, skin and guts removed. It sells for more per kilo than whole cuttlefish, but with no loss and no preparation time.

Sources

Read next