Land: Norway

Norwegian fishermen are split over the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate’s acquisition

Fish farming is booming in Norway under the watchful eye of ecologists, says a report.

The North Norwegian fishing industry looks quite different today than it did 15 years ago. One in three businesses has been closed down and job numbers have halved. The industry has lost NOK 750 million during this period.

Farmed fish grows well with considerably less fishmeal in the feed, observed scientists.

Norway’s exports in May of groundfish products, including clipfish, salted fish and stockfish, totalled NOK 667 million. This is a reduction of NOK 88.7 million compared to May 2008, according to the latest figures from the Norwegian Seafood Export Council*. The volume of exports in the same period fell by 2 000 tonnes.

The biotechnology company Aker BioMarine is strengthening finance, and pharmaceutical-market operations.

Exports of salmon in May equalled 2 billion NOK. This is the highest export value ever recorded for an individual month. The growth of some 468 million NOK is largely a result of an increase in the price of salmon. The price of fresh salmon has not been as high since August 2006, according to figures from the Norwegian Seafood Export Council.

In May seafood to the value of 3.3 billion NOK

Norway’s Bergen Group has landed a big order for fishing vessels from Russia, says the company.

Consumption and demand for pelagic fish is not particularly affected by financial turmoil, and there is a growing demand for cheaper species like herring and capelin. Norway Pelagic hence experience growth in margins.