A defrosting technology delivers fresher seafood with lower transport costs. Fresher than fresh! Photo: IceFresh

Journey to China: 'Salmon Shouldn’t Have to Fly'

NORWAY
Monday, January 19, 2026, 00:10 (GMT + 9)

New thawing technology promises super-fresh fish worldwide—without air freight

A quiet revolution is taking place in the global seafood industry. Thanks to new thawing technology developed through years of research, frozen fish can now be brought back to a state that closely resembles fresh-from-the-boat quality. The breakthrough could make it possible for consumers thousands of miles from the coast to enjoy premium seafood—while dramatically cutting emissions, food waste and costs. The work has been strongly supported by the Norwegian research organization SINTEF, which has played a central role in turning theory into industrial reality.

The freshness window. How long does a fresh fish remain edible? Anywhere from 7-14 days depending on the type of fish and the cold chain. More than half of the time is often lost in transport. If you are lucky, you can keep it in the fridge for a few days before it starts smelling “fishy” as it spoils. Ill: Hofseth

For generations, freshness has defined fish quality. In coastal communities, anything caught more than a couple of days earlier was often rejected outright. Once a fish dies, the clock starts ticking. Traditionally, the industry’s answer has been speed: fly the fish to market as fast as possible and hope it reaches the consumer before quality declines.

But flying seafood across the globe comes at a high price—environmentally and economically. Researchers and entrepreneurs have therefore been asking a crucial question for more than two decades: how can fish reach distant markets at peak quality without relying on air freight?

According to SINTEF senior research scientist Trond Andresen, the answer lies in understanding thawing as a complex scientific process rather than a simple logistical step. “Thawing fish might seem straightforward, but it involves advanced interactions between heat transfer, airflow and raw material quality,” he explains. SINTEF’s expertise in food technology, thermodynamics and flow science has been key to developing adaptive thawing systems that adjust automatically to different fish species, cuts and packaging formats.

At the center of the story is Icefresh, a company founded by Anders Haugland, who previously researched fish thawing at SINTEF. The core idea is deceptively simple: freeze fish at peak freshness close to where it is caught, ship it slowly and efficiently by sea, and thaw it just days before it reaches the consumer. “If we can get the fish as close as possible to the customer before the freshness window starts, everyone wins,” Haugland says. “Freezing lets us stop time—but thawing it correctly is the real challenge.”

After years of research, Icefresh developed controlled thawing cabinets that use carefully calibrated temperatures and airflow. The process preserves texture, taste and appearance far better than conventional thawing. While the technology worked in the lab, turning it into a viable business proved far more difficult.

Early efforts focused on China, where Icefresh attempted to sell thawed Norwegian salmon directly to consumers via e-commerce platforms. The concept was bold, but geopolitical tensions and fragile last-mile logistics ultimately derailed the plan. The turning point came in late 2021, when Icefresh partnered with Hofseth International, a major seafood supplier to the US market.

The number of days a fish fillet stays fresh in the chiller cabinet depends on both the type of fish and the temperature. Illustration: Trygve Eikevik, NTNU

For Hofseth, the technology offered a way to eliminate air freight entirely while still supplying “fresh” fish counters. Large-scale trials in the United States followed, including a test involving 230,000 portions of thawed salmon compared directly with fresh. Chefs and consumers reported no meaningful difference in quality, validating both the technology and the logistics model.

Estimated potential of REFRESHING. Photo: SINTEF

Scaling up, however, required another leap. Large customers demanded industrial thawing tunnels capable of handling hundreds of thousands of portions per day. At this stage, SINTEF became even more deeply involved through an Innovation Project for the Industrial Sector (IPN) called REFRESHING, supported by the Research Council of Norway. Together with Icefresh, Hofseth and MMC First Process, SINTEF is helping develop next-generation tunnel-based thawing systems that combine quality preservation with high energy efficiency and productivity.

The stakes are enormous. Today, millions of tonnes of salmon are flown out of Norway every year. If this fish were instead frozen, shipped by sea and thawed near the market, the industry could cut an estimated six million tonnes of CO₂ emissions annually—three times the yearly emissions of Norway’s largest oil refinery at Mongstad.

“The benefits are simply too great to ignore,” says Hofseth. “When we stop flying fish, the seafood industry’s footprint will shrink dramatically.”

With thawing hubs planned for major markets such as Chicago and Miami, and further upgrades underway in Los Angeles, the vision is taking shape. In the long run, proponents believe airfreighting fresh fish will become a historical footnote—and that high-quality seafood will be available everywhere, without the climate cost.

From there on, as Haugland puts it, only one thing will determine the final result: what happens in the kitchen.

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