Live mud crab with blue claws in an aquarium tank

Representative photo. Your order is made to your specification by a verified seller. Photo: “Scylla serrata by OpenCage”, source, CC BY-SA 2.5.

Live and frozen crab exporter in Bangladesh

Buy mud crab through Roptan, your live and frozen crab exporter in Bangladesh. Tell us live or soft-shell, the weight per piece, sex and quantity: we source from a verified seller, check condition and papers, and ship live by air or frozen by sea.

Verified sellers
Checked before it ships
Delivered by Roptan

Prefer to deal with suppliers yourself? Post it on the requirement board

Buying live and frozen crab in Bangladesh

Bangladesh's export crab is the mud crab (Scylla species), caught as crablets in the Sundarbans and coastal waters, fattened in ponds or reared as soft-shell crab in floating baskets. Almost all of it is exported: about 97 percent on official production and export figures from 2018. Live hard-shell crab flies mainly to Asian markets; frozen soft-shell crab is popular with Western buyers.

A live and frozen crab exporter in Bangladesh has two risks to manage: crabs that die in transit, and papers or lab results that do not hold up at the border. Roptan sources from verified sellers, sets grade, sex and loss allowance in the order, checks certificates at their source and inspects the crabs before they leave.

Kinds of mud crab for export

Live male crab

Hard-shell males graded by weight per piece. Premium live markets pay most for large males, so state the minimum weight you accept and how you want claws secured.

Live female crab with roe

Females held in ponds until the roe is fully developed, then exported alive. Some live markets prefer large, egg-bearing females for traditional dining, and pay for the roe.

Frozen soft-shell crab

Young crabs reared in floating baskets in saline water, taken within hours of moulting while the new shell is paper-thin, then frozen. Choose it for restaurants and frozen-food importers.

How to brief a live and frozen crab exporter in Bangladesh

Species: Mud crab (Scylla species). Sources disagree on which species Bangladesh exports, so ask the seller to document it if your import papers need a name.
Grade: Weight per piece and sex. Crabs are traded in many commercial grades, 18 in one 2026 report, so define each grade in grams, not by name.
Live condition: Alive and active at packing, the packing method, and the share of dead crab you accept on arrival.
Soft-shell crab: Size per piece, how soft the shell must be, and the time from moult to freezing.
Pack and route: Box weight and crabs per box for air freight; carton pack and a core temperature usually of -18 °C or colder for frozen crab.
Lab tests: Bacteria, cadmium and hormone residues such as estradiol: the problems one importing market reported in 2020.

Rules and papers for crab shipments

Health certificate and its issuer: FIQC offices of the Department of Fisheries issue export health certificates under the Fish and Fish Products (Inspection and Quality Control) Act 2020. Confirm which authority issued yours.
EU residue control plans: Food of animal origin shipped to the EU must come from a country running residue plans for drugs, pesticides and contaminants, under Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/1644.
US seafood HACCP (21 CFR Part 123): A crab processor shipping to the US needs a written HACCP plan, which the US importer must verify before the goods can enter.

What moves the price of mud crab

Size and sex: large males and roe-filled females usually fetch more in live markets than small or empty crabs.
Wild seed: farms depend on wild crablets because hatchery production has not yet succeeded, so supply follows the wild catch.
Season: in one study the female gonad index peaked in February and March, which affects how many females carry full roe.
Transit loss and air freight: crabs that die on the way are paid for but not sold, and air freight is charged by weight.
Testing and papers: per-lot lab tests and certificate checks add to the landed cost.

Lead times and delivery

No fixed lead time can be given for crab. Live crab ships when the seller holds crabs of your grade and airline space from Dhaka is booked; females for roe wait until the roe is full. Soft-shell supply depends on how many crabs moult in the baskets. Lab tests add time. Roptan confirms the dates and the minimum order in the quote.

Most Bangladeshi crab is exported, but Roptan can deliver live crab and frozen soft-shell crab to hotels and restaurants inside Bangladesh, the frozen crab by refrigerated truck with a temperature record. You receive a packing list by grade, any lab reports ordered and a VAT invoice (Mushak 6.3). Dead crab or soft cartons are recorded on arrival and settled with the seller.

Buying live and frozen crab for export

Live crab is moved from the coast to Dhaka and flown from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport. Frozen soft-shell crab is quoted FOB Chattogram in a reefer container, or CFR or CIF. Documents: commercial invoice, packing list, air waybill or bill of lading, the health certificate, a certificate of origin or REX statement for EU GSP, and the lot's lab reports.

What we check for this order

Species and source papersThe seller's papers on species and source, and evidence against juvenile crab, since strong demand has led some harvesters to take crabs too small.
Certificate at its sourceWe confirm each health certificate with the issuing office, because forged certificates once closed a major market to Bangladeshi crab.
Live condition before the flightCrabs are counted and checked alive and active at packing, so losses on arrival can be measured against the allowance.
Lab report for the lotBacteria, cadmium and residues tested on your lot by an accredited lab before the crabs leave.

Questions buyers ask

Which crab species does Bangladesh export?

Mud crab of the genus Scylla. Sources disagree on the exact species, so we describe it as mud crab (Scylla species) unless the seller documents it. If your import permit needs a species name, tell us before the quote.

How is soft-shell crab produced?

Young crabs are kept in floating baskets in saline water. The moment a crab moults it is harvested within hours, while the new shell is still paper-thin, and frozen at once for export.

Who bears the loss when live crabs die in transit?

Agree it before you order. Transit deaths are a known problem in the trade, blamed on weak cold storage and logistics, so the contract should state a loss allowance, how dead crab is counted on arrival and what happens above it. We record the count at packing to support any claim.

Why do you check certificates so closely?

In 2020 one major importing market suspended Bangladeshi crab and eel after finding harmful bacteria, forged certificates, and estradiol and cadmium above its limits. Trade has since resumed, but the lesson stands: we confirm the certificate with its issuer and test the lot before it flies.

How soon will I hear back about shrimp and fish?

Within 48 hours of a complete requirement, with a price and a delivery date. A requirement is complete when it has the quantity, where it is needed and by when.

Who do I deal with?

With Roptan, when Roptan manages the order: we buy from the verified seller and deliver to you. With the supplier directly, when you post on the requirement board and choose a quote yourself.