Although Nephrops norvegicus is the basis for a major European fishery, in comparison to other fisheries surprisingly few measures have been taken so far to assure a maximum postharvest quality and to gain a high quality product. Knowledge of early and late postmortem biochemical changes is poor and it is not known how ante- and peri-harvest stressors affect the postharvest product quality in N. norvegicus. Several quality parameters, such as rigor mortis, kvalue, trimethylamine (TMA), ammonia, oxidized lipids, the bacteria load and the pH are generally known to reflect quality. However, none of these parameters is established for N. norvegicus and research is needed to elucidate their importance in this species. The aims of this study were to expand the knowledge of postmortem biochemical changes and postcapture bacterial spoilage in N. norvegicus. Modified atmosphere packing was also applied in order to prolong and extend the shelf life of the product and quality was measured using the previously established parameters.