Grieg Seafood cutting jobs at Norway HQ

It has not said how many jobs will go, but the figure is reported to be significant. More than 70 people work at the head office.

The move had been expected since the group, once one of Norway’s “big six” salmon farmers, sold its two main Canadian businesses and its Finnmark, Norway operation to Cermaq a few weeks ago.

It sold its UK business in Shetland and the Isle of Skye to Scottish Sea Farms in December 2021 for £164m, with the intention of concentrating on Norway and Canada.

With such a large part of the business gone, it was inevitable that fewer people would be needed. The staff reduction process is reported to have already started, but is likely to take a few days before it will be known how many people will remain with the company.

Yesterday it was announced that Nina Willumsen Grieg had moved up from interim CEO to permanent CEO.

She told the Norwegian newspaper Dagens Næringsliv yesterday that the company will prioritise profitable operations over growth, adding: “It will be a significant cut compared to where we are today, since we are left with one region. This applies to both sales and head office.”

Grieg Seafood is expected to harvest almost 9,000 tonnes this year from its Rogaland operation, which it is retaining.