Who We Supply: Six Kinds of Buyer for Scottish Seafood
Al Shene Marine Holding manages the supply chain for Scottish seafood from catch or farm to final delivery, and the same supply chain ends in very different places. A container of frozen mackerel ends in an importer's cold store. A box of fresh sole ends in a hotel kitchen. A consignment of kelp extract ends in a cosmetics laboratory. Each of these buyers needs something different from us: another pack, another route, another set of papers and, often, another way of talking about the product. This page describes the six kinds of buyer we supply, what each typically orders from our range, and what each should tell us in a first enquiry. It is a map, not a catalogue; the product detail sits on our specialist sites, linked below, and the group's structure is explained on our structure page.
The six buyer groups at a glance
| Buyer group | Typical lines from our range | Usual route from Scotland | What the first enquiry should include |
|---|---|---|---|
| Importers and distributors | Frozen fish and shellfish by the container; fresh salmon by air | Sea, road or air | Port of arrival, volumes per shipment, documents required by your customs |
| Retail chains | Frozen fish in vacuum packs; fresh fish on ice; smoked and marinated lines | Air, sea or road | Brand and label languages for private label, pack sizes |
| Restaurants and hotels | Plaice and sole, salmon portions, live langoustine, crab and lobster | Air | Weekly usage, portion size, delivery address or importer |
| Processors and food manufacturers | Haddock and cod blocks, mackerel IQF whole or chunks, herring, salmon head-on gutted | Sea or road | Raw material form, size, annual volume |
| Ingredient buyers | Seaweed and kelp extracts; fish oil and fish meal | Sea or road | Sector, required grade or specification, documents |
| Gulf buyers | The full range, with fresh salmon and shellfish by air | Air and sea | Halal requirement, Arabic labels, delivery country in the GCC |
The groups overlap. A Gulf importer may also supply hotels; a retail chain may buy both fresh and frozen. The table is meant to help you find your starting point.
Importers and distributors
Importers and distributors are the backbone of our trade. They buy in volume, hold stock and resell in their own market, so their questions are about units, documents and terms. For frozen goods, the smallest unit by sea is one reefer container of roughly 12 to 26 tonnes, loaded at Leith or Grangemouth. For fresh goods by air, the minimum is one pallet of about 500 kg to 1 tonne. Within Europe, frozen goods also move by temperature-controlled road transport.
Every consignment comes with a health certificate and a certificate of origin, CITES papers where a species is listed, and follow-up of customs clearance until the goods are released. Payment follows our standard terms: 30% in advance by T/T and 70% against a copy of the bill of lading, or an irrevocable letter of credit at sight for large volumes. An independent body such as SGS, or a representative of the importer, can inspect the goods before loading.
Retail chains
A retail chain needs a product that arrives ready for the shelf and carries the chain's own name. Private label packing is available. Frozen goods are individually quick frozen, sealed in vacuum inner packs and boxed in master cartons, which suits retail freezers and distribution centres. Fresh goods are packed on ice in insulated EPS boxes of 6, 10 or 20 kg for the service counter. Retail buyers should send their label text and language versions with the enquiry. Smoked salmon and marinated herring, which many chains list in their chilled ranges, are part of our value-added range and can be included in the same order.
Restaurants and hotels
Professional kitchens care about consistency: the same portion, the same texture and the same freshness every week. Plaice and sole are supplied specifically for restaurants and hotels; salmon is available in portions; and live Scottish langoustine, brown and velvet crab and European lobster can be supplied for kitchens that cook shellfish to order. Fresh and live lines travel the same or next day by air cargo from Edinburgh and Glasgow, and every air shipment carries a temperature data logger. Hotels and restaurant groups in the Gulf are served through our Dubai company; our Dubai site has a separate page on supplying hotels and restaurants, and the flatfish are described on our plaice and sole page.
Processors and food manufacturers
Processors buy raw material that will become another product: fish fingers, ready meals, smoked fish, canned goods. For them the form of the fish matters more than the presentation. On our company record, haddock and cod come as fillets, blocks and portions; mackerel as IQF whole fish or chunks; herring as frozen fillets or marinated and salted products; and salmon as head-on gutted fish, fillets pin-bone out or pin-bone in, and portions. Processors usually buy by the container and plan a programme over the year, so an annual volume estimate in the first enquiry helps us prepare a realistic offer.
Ingredient buyers
Some of our buyers never sell seafood as such. Food, cosmetics, pharmaceutical and agricultural companies use seaweed, kelp and kelp extracts as ingredients, and feed and food-supplement producers use fish oil and fish meal. These buyers work to their own technical specifications and supplier-approval documents, and they should send them with the enquiry; the offer then states what can be supplied against them. Our value-added site covers the value-added range in more detail.
Gulf buyers
The Gulf is a market where our group has its own base. Al Shene Marine Holding LLC in Dubai is the global management and finance centre and runs operations and distribution for the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait. Gulf buyers can therefore deal with a Dubai company while the goods are sourced and prepared in Scotland. Halal certification is part of our certification list; if you need Arabic label text, include it in the enquiry. Fresh salmon and live shellfish reach the Gulf by air; frozen lines can travel by sea in reefer containers.
What every buyer receives
Whatever the buyer group, some things do not change. Our certification list names UK/EC Approval for the Scottish processing and freezing plant, BRCGS Food Safety at grade A, HACCP, Halal and ISO 22000; the last of these covers the whole facility and every processed product. MSC and ASC are limited to the relevant product groups. Our Scottish cold stores hold frozen goods at −25 °C and chilled goods at +2 °C. And every enquiry goes to a single address, so the right team can answer.
| What stays the same for all buyers | Detail |
|---|---|
| Contact | info@sultanrashid.com, by email only |
| Documents | Health certificate, certificate of origin, CITES where a species is listed, customs follow-up |
| Inspection | Before loading, by an independent body such as SGS or by your representative |
| Cold chain | Cold stores at −25 °C and +2 °C; temperature data logger on every air shipment |
| Markets | Middle East, European Union, Asia-Pacific, North America |
Where we deliver
Our markets are the Middle East (the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait), the European Union (France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and Germany), Asia-Pacific (Japan, China, South Korea and Singapore) and North America (the United States and Canada).
Starting as a new buyer
- Tell us who you are. In your email to info@sultanrashid.com, say which buyer group describes you best and in which country you operate.
- Name the products and forms. Product, fresh or frozen, cut or form, pack and quantity.
- List your requirements. Documents, certificates, label languages, private label, inspection.
- Receive the offer. It sets out the specification, route, documents and payment terms.
- Confirm and ship. After the advance payment, the goods are prepared in Scotland and dispatched by the agreed route.
How an order moves through the group is explained on how we work.
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of buyers does Al Shene Marine Holding supply?
Importers and distributors, retail chains, restaurants and hotels, processors and food manufacturers, ingredient buyers such as feed, cosmetics and supplement producers, and buyers in the Gulf.
Can a retail chain order under its own brand?
Yes. Retail chains can have their goods packed under their own label. Send your label text and languages with the enquiry.
Do you supply restaurants and hotels?
Yes. Plaice and sole are supplied for restaurants and hotels, along with salmon portions and live shellfish. These lines are flown the same or next day by air cargo from Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Is there a minimum order?
One pallet of about 500 kg to 1 tonne for fresh goods by air, and one reefer container of about 12 to 26 tonnes for frozen goods by sea.
Who handles buyers in the Gulf?
Al Shene Marine Holding LLC in Dubai runs operations and distribution for the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait.
Back to the start page.
Published by the two group companies, Al Shene Marine Holding LLC in Dubai and Al Shene Marine Ltd. in Scotland. The holding was set up by its Founder, Sultan Rashid Abdullah Rashid Al Shene. Every buyer enquiry is handled through info@sultanrashid.com.