With a rich heritage, Channel Fish Processing is embracing sustainability and innovation
Based in Braintree, Massachusetts, Channel Fish Processing is a seafood processing company offering a daily selection of premier New England ground fish species. Dating back to 1946, the company is deeply rooted in Boston’s seafood processing history. Today, three generations later, Channel Fish Processing remains 100-percent family owned and operated by the Zaffiro family, but the business has grown from a local cod and haddock processor to a nationwide seafood distributor.
With more than 78 combined years of expertise, alongside state-of-the-art facilities and technology, Channel Fish Processing provides the highest quality seafood products. The company strives to be a strategic long-term partner to its customers and operates with the principles of respect, adaptability, accountability, and loyalty at its core. CEO, Thomas Zaffiro, joins Food Chain to tell us more about the business and its operations.
“We are a family owned and operated fresh, frozen, and value-added seafood processor,” he opens. “The company was founded in 1946 on the Boston Fish Pier and was focused on processing only fresh fish at that time, but over the years, began to produce frozen and breaded products as well. Today, Channel Fish Processing has a full line of fresh, frozen, and breaded products.
“We serve clients across retail, foodservice, and commercial, as well as government customers. Our products range from affordable, nutritious items like Alaskan pollock fish sticks, to items you might find at a white tablecloth restaurant like haddock, cod, and salmon. We offer the capability to make almost any raw or value-added seafood product with products ranging from small retail packs up to large foodservice bulk packs.”
Strategic partnerships
Channel Fish Processing also offers a private label service, creating products that rival and often surpass well-known brand names. This service guarantees the highest quality retail or restaurant-ready seafood products without compromising nutritional value or flavors. The company’s processing capabilities include hand crafted fish filleting, automated fish filleting and portioning, breading and batter coating, high efficiency frying, and IQF freezing. Packaging options, on the other hand, include hand packing, automated retail boxing, automated retail bagging, and automated bulk packaging.
On the packaging side, Channel Fish Processing has recently added a skin pack production line to expand its range of processing capabilities. Skin packing technology extends the shelf life of seafood by vacuum sealing the product with a breathable film to preserve freshness and moisture content. Aside from quality and freshness, skin packing also offers clean and attractive presentation, making it easier for customers to select their preferred products.
“Adding skin pack capabilities opens more doors for us to compete on products in the retail space,” Thomas states. “It will allow us to participate in additional seafood business where we were not previously participating. For instance, we’re testing lobster in a skin pack, and we’re involved with multiple test trials for other products. Our investment in skin pack technology also demonstrates our commitment to providing solutions that enhance both product quality and customer convenience.”
Such investments are key for Channel Fish Processing to maintain its industry-leading position and stay ahead of the curve. “We’re constantly looking at ways to become more efficient through new machinery, automation, and robotics,” Thomas explains. “Most recently, alongside the skin pack line, we added an automatic label printer and scale system to print and label skin pack product in line.”
Industry partnerships with suppliers and vendors are also central to Channel Fish Processing’s continuous success. “We maintain a strategic partnership with the Alaskan seafood industry,” Thomas elaborates. “Working with organizations like Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers and Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute as well as Alaskan fishing companies has been crucial to allowing us to grow. They provide access to a great, sustainable resource. However, this is just one example, as we have several strategic local fishing partners too.
“As one of our core values, loyalty guides everything we do. We still work with many of our customers and suppliers from more than 50 years ago. This is particularly important considering that we’re a family business, as our reach extends beyond my family and to the many local families that make up our employees. From management staff to our highly experienced fish cutters, the family aspect remains at the heart of the business.” 
Sustainable solutions
When it comes to sustainability, Channel Fish Processing works closely with organizations like the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), Best Aquaculture Practices, and the Gulf of Maine Research Institute to ensure best practices. The company believes that by supporting and protecting local and national fisheries today, it will allow them to continue to be sustainable for many future generations.
“A focus on sustainability is almost a requirement in business now, and Channel Fish Processing is no exception,” Thomas says. “Sustainability is a priority for most of the customers we work with, which has been an increasing trend over the last ten years, especially in the retail space. We try to buy as much sustainable product as we can. Sustainability is a priority in our production plant as well. One hundred percent of our fish waste is reused in downstream products like pet food and fish oil. We also recycle 100 percent of our corrugate and have a Styrofoam recycling machine in the factory.”
As our conversation draws to a close, Thomas turns his attention to the future of Channel Fish Processing. “We have an ambitious target to grow the business by another 30-to-35 percent by sales dollars over the next five years,” he reveals. “As we continue to strive to be a trusted and agile seafood processing partner for our customers, we hope to expand into other value-added proteins and vegetables via appetizers.
“From a sales perspective, we are looking to diversify sales channels and expand product offerings,” he concludes. “However, we’re currently focused on adapting our product mix and reviewing our pricing strategy as we prepare to navigate the changing tariff landscape. Many grocery items, including seafood, rely on a global supply chain, meaning a disruption anywhere—due to tariffs, natural disasters, or other factors—can ripple through to local prices and availability. In today’s ever-changing business climate, we are hopeful our years of experience in the seafood industry and varied product offerings will keep giving shoppers the meal solutions they need to feed their families.”