How to choose a tuna supplier: a buyer's audit checklist
Tuna is a commodity, but tuna suppliers are not. The difference between a supplier that ships on specification every month and one that disappears when raw material tightens shows up long before the first container — if you know what to audit. This checklist comes from the questions experienced importers ask us, and the ones they wish they had asked previous suppliers.
1. Who owns the raw material?
The single most important question. A processor with its own fleet controls supply and price through the season; a broker re-selling open-market loins inherits every shortage. Ask for vessel lists, ownership documentation and what share of throughput comes from owned versus allied vessels. Eurofish, for reference, lands about 70% of its raw material from its own 21 purse seiners.
2. Certification scope, not certification logos
Anyone can paste a BRCGS logo on a website. Ask for the certificate itself and check three things: the certified site matches the plant that will produce your goods, the scope covers your product category (canning, pouches, frozen loins), and the certificate is current. Cross-check BRCGS and IFS certificates in the standards' public directories.
3. Laboratory capacity in numbers
Histamine is the defining risk in tuna. A serious supplier can tell you exactly how many histamine analyses its lab runs daily, the contractual limit it accepts, and show certificates of analysis from past lots. Ask how net and drained weight are controlled and whether a microbiology lab releases finished product on site.
4. Traceability you can test
Pick any lot code from a sample and ask the supplier to trace it: vessel, fishing trip, processing date. A vertically integrated processor answers in hours. Also confirm IUU documentation, Dolphin Safe monitoring and — for premium programmes — participation in a fishery improvement project such as TUNACONS.
5. Commercial substance
- References: existing customers in your region or retail tier.
- Export history: years shipping to your specific market and familiarity with its documentation.
- Financial stability: a plant investing in capacity and treatment infrastructure is planning to be here in ten years.
- Communication: a firm offer with specification, certification set and shipment window within days — not a price in a chat message.
Red flags
Prices well below market with no fleet to explain them; reluctance to name the producing plant; certificates "available after contract"; no laboratory data; samples that don't match production lots. Each one predicts the same ending: a claim file instead of a programme.
Frequently asked questions
Should I audit the plant in person?
For programme volumes, yes — most serious buyers visit before the first annual contract. We host plant audits in Manta and Montecristi; remote video audits are available for first orders.
What histamine limit should I specify?
Regulatory limits vary by market (the EU works to 100 ppm with sampling rules, the US FDA guidance level is 35 ppm). Specify your market's limit in the contract and require a certificate of analysis per lot.
How do I verify a BRCGS or IFS certificate?
Both standards run public directories where you can search the site by name and certificate number. Verify the site, scope and expiry date — not just the logo.
Further reading
Qualify us as your supplier
Request our audit pack: certificates, laboratory statistics, fleet documentation and references for your market.