Delayed Icing and Auction Waits Drive Costly Fish Loss at Omani Retail

A new Oman study has quantified how delays in cold-chain practices and auction-style timing drive costly fish waste at the retail level. Researchers at Barka fish market on the Al Batinah coast found retailers lost an average of 23.75 Omani rials per day due to post-harvest fish loss, with the worst-affected traders losing up to 80 rials in a day. Published in Results in Engineering, the work surveyed 40 of 45 retailers active between March and June 2025. Using interviews, field observations, and quality checks based on appearance, odor, color, and texture, the team separated outright physical losses from quality losses sold at steep discounts. Ordinary least squares modeling produced a nine-predictor model explaining 84.2% of daily monetary loss variation. Delaying icing added about 22.8 rials per day, while each extra hour of selling time added 8.6 rials. Immediate washing, correct ice-to-fish ratios, and formal training were linked to lower losses. Training was rare: only 7.5% of retailers had received formal instruction, and 90% delayed icing after receiving fish.