Norwegian seafood exports up, but salmon still a problem – Fishfarmer Magazine

Norwegian seafood exports up, but salmon still a problem15 February, 2012 –

THE Norwegian seafood industry has got off to a bright start for the New year with the value of exports up by 34 million kroners  (4.24-million euros or £3.5 million sterling) to 4.2 billion kroners (557-million euros or £468-million sterling).

Egil Ove Sundheim, director of market information with the Norwegian Seafood Council, said:  ”We have noted two general trends in January: on the one hand, there has been an increase in exports of products from fish caught in the wild such as herring, mackerel and clipfish. And on the other, the value of exports of Norwegian Salmon is showing a decline as a result of lower prices,”

However, salmon prices remain a problem. In January the value of exports of Norwegian Salmon totalled 1.9 billion kroners, down by  423 million kroners  from January last year. The price of fresh whole Norwegian Salmon fell from 39.47 kroners to 25.99  kroners per kg. In terms of volume, however, exports of all Norwegian Salmon products increased by 12,000 tonnes to a total of 67,000 tonnes. France, Russia and Poland were the biggest importers of Norwegian Salmon.

The value of exports of Norwegian Fjord Trout increased in January by  26 million kroners to a total of 146 million kroners. Russia was the biggest market for Norwegian Fjord Trout in January.

Herring exports in January were up in value by 190 million kroners to a total of 629 million kroners. Russia again is the fastest growing market, with exports in January up in value by 42 million kroners to a total value of 168  million kroners. Russia was also the biggest market for herring in January, followed by Germany and Ukraine. Exports of fresh and frozen Norwegian Cod increased in value in January by 89 million kroners to a total of 504 million kroners. China was the biggest market, with exports valued at  104 million kroners followed by the United States at 42 million kroners.