The fishing industry made an overall profit in just five of the 15 years, according to a report prepared by Nofima Marked on commission for the Executive Committee for Northern Norway.
“The losses are unevenly distributed and some companies have still managed to make money virtually every year,” says Scientist Bjørn Inge Bendiksen at Nofima Marked. “As a whole, the fishing industry has for many years had weak profitability. While 2008 was a rough year for many in the white fish industry, 2009 can be far worse.”
A total of 120 companies in the white fish industry have been closed down since 1995. The biggest decline is in the counties of Nordland, Møre og Romsdal and Troms.
In the same period, each company employed fewer staff. Many tasks have been automated and many filleting companies with high staffing levels have closed down. Viewed collectively, the number of people employed in the fishing industry has halved to 2700 in 2007. These figures relate to the industry that processes wild fish – not farmed fish.
