Cephalopods are the quiet backbone of Indian seafood exports. Squid and cuttlefish from the Arabian Sea move in serious volume into Spain, Italy, China, Vietnam and Korea — and Veraval, where we operate, is one of the main landing points on that coast.
Species we export
| Product | Species | Forms | Freezing | Packing / market |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Squid, whole round | Loligo duvauceli | Whole round | Block frozen | 10 kg / 20 kg blocks |
| Squid, whole cleaned | Loligo duvauceli | Whole cleaned | IQF | Export Grade A |
| Squid rings & tentacles | Loligo duvauceli | Rings, tentacles | IQF | Food service / retail |
| Baby squid | Loligo duvauceli | Whole baby | Block frozen | 10 kg blocks |
| Cuttlefish, whole cleaned | Sepia pharaonis | Whole cleaned | IQF | Premium export grade |
| Cuttlefish, tray pack | Sepia pharaonis | Whole cleaned | IQF | Retail tray |
| Cuttlefish, whole round | Sepia pharaonis | Whole round | Block frozen | Arabian Sea |
| Cuttlefish skewers | Sepia aculeata | Skewered, cleaned | IQF | Europe, Middle East |
| Octopus, whole cleaned | Octopus membranaceus | Whole cleaned | IQF | Europe, East Asia |
Squid or cuttlefish? They are not interchangeable
Loligo duvauceli — Indian squid — has a long tapered mantle that cuts cleanly into rings, and a texture that holds up to fast, high-heat cooking. Sepia pharaonis — pharaoh cuttlefish — is broader, thicker-walled, and carries an internal cuttlebone; it is prized in Southern Europe and Japan and generally commands a higher price per kilo for clean, white, well-graded material. Buyers who substitute one for the other on a spec sheet usually discover the difference at the fryer. We wrote a full squid vs cuttlefish buyer's guide for exactly this reason.
Cleaning grades and what "whole cleaned" should mean
"Whole cleaned" is used loosely across the industry. In our specification it means the mantle is fully skinned where the buyer requires skinless, the viscera and ink sac are removed, the cuttlebone or pen is out, and the eye and beak are removed. Whiteness grade is stated explicitly, because on cephalopods whiteness is the single biggest driver of price after size. We will send photographs of the actual grade before you fix a price — not a stock image of somebody else's product.
Seasonality and price
Cephalopod landings on the Gujarat coast swing hard with the season. The fishing year is shaped by the monsoon ban, and price follows availability with a lag. If you are planning a year's programme rather than a spot purchase, the Veraval season calendar shows where the peaks sit and when contracts are usually best fixed.
Packing formats
- Bulk blocks — 10 kg and 20 kg, interleaved, for processors and re-packers.
- IQF bulk — 1 kg / 5 kg polybags in master cartons.
- Retail tray packs — shelf-ready, buyer-branded, with your artwork and barcode.
- Skewers and prepared formats — see value-added seafood.