Russia Takes 51% of EU Frozen Pollock-Fillet Market as First-Half Sales Reach $218 Million
Russia supplied 66,000 tonnes of frozen pollock fillets to the EU in the first half of 2026, raising its volume share to 51%. Sales increased 11% by weight and 34% by value to $218 million, while shipments from the United States and China declined.
Russian share rises as competing supplies contract
Russia strengthened its position as the European Union’s largest supplier of frozen pollock fillets in the first half of 2026, capturing 51% of the market by volume, up from 44% a year earlier. The Russian Fish Union reported the figures after analyzing Eurostat data, according to Interfax.
Russian shipments increased by 11% year on year to 66,000 tonnes in January-June, while their value rose by 34% to $218 million. The faster increase in revenue than in volume indicates a substantial rise in the average value per tonne. Based on the reported totals, Russian shipments were worth about $3,303 per tonne during the period, although the Fish Union did not publish a separate average-price figure for pollock fillets.
The expansion came as the two other major suppliers lost volume. US exports of pollock fillets to the EU fell by 15% to 46,000 tonnes and by 10% in value to $178 million. Chinese shipments also declined by 15% to 19,000 tonnes, while their value remained unchanged from the first half of 2025 at $62 million. Russia therefore widened its volume lead over the United States to 20,000 tonnes and supplied more than three times China’s volume.
Output growth remains modest
Russian at-sea production of pollock fillets reached 73,000 tonnes by August 16, 2026, only 1% above the comparable level a year earlier, the Fish Union said. The contrast between modest production growth and an 11% increase in EU deliveries suggests that market allocation, inventory timing or changes in sales to other destinations also contributed to the first-half export gain. The source provided no figures for those alternative markets.
Pollock fillets accounted for most of Russia’s fish exports to the EU. Total Russian fish shipments to the bloc reached 94,000 tonnes worth $417 million in the first half, meaning frozen pollock fillets represented about 70% of the reported volume and 52% of value. Russia also shipped 4,700 tonnes of surimi worth $10.2 million. At-sea production of pollock surimi had reached 55,000 tonnes by August 16.
Cod prices reflect tighter Barents Sea quota
The Fish Union also reported Russian exports of 5,200 tonnes of frozen cod to the EU, valued at $47.7 million, and 5,300 tonnes of frozen cod fillets worth $63.4 million. The average export price of Russian frozen cod rose by 40% year on year, while the price of frozen cod fillets increased by 30%.
The organization linked the increases partly to the Russian-Norwegian fisheries commission’s decision to reduce the 2026 total allowable catch for Atlantic cod in the Barents Sea by 16% from the 2025 level to 285,000 tonnes. Russia’s quota is 136,000 tonnes. Norwegian frozen-cod deliveries to the EU fell by 28% to 3,000 tonnes and by 6% in value to $33 million, while US shipments rose by 5% to 2,400 tonnes and by 30% to $18.7 million. The figures show diverging supply conditions across the EU’s whitefish market: Russia expanded its lead in pollock, while tighter cod availability pushed values higher despite mixed shipment trends.
