Seafood arrives to Market all through the night, from a range of NSW fishers, farms and cooperatives, as well as fishers as far flung as Tasmania, the Northern Territory, and New Zealand.

It is laid out in neat sections on the auction floor in our famous blue crates by the hardworking night shift staff, ready for buyers to inspect the next day.

Dutch clock auction is a silent auction, which begins at a price above that anticipated for the product on offer, and drops until a bid is made. The starting price is usually set about $2 to $5 above what the product is expected to sell for. 

Three clocks auction seafood simultaneously to keep the process speedy... We have up to 50 tonnes to get through every day, after all!

After inspecting the seafood, our registered buyers watch the clocks and start bidding on product, either using keypads in the buyer's grandstand, or remotely.

Once they have secured their catch, buyers send their 'wheelers' onto the floor with a picking slip. 

The wheelers (who have one of the most physical jobs at the Market) collect the various boxes on trolleys, forklifts, or by hand, and take them out to the carpark.

Then, the seafood is whisked away in refrigerated trucks to wholesalers, restaurants, fishmongers, and grocery stores all over Sydney!

Want to see it for yourself? Book one of our Behind the Scenes Tours for a glimpse of the action.