SalMar, Måsøval report contrasting Q1 harvest numbers
Two Norwegian salmon farming companies, SalMar and Måsøval, have just released 2023 first quarter harvest trading updates.
SalMar recorded a slight increase, slaughtering 48,500 tonnes during the January to March period, from 45,000 tonnes in the same period last year.
Some 42,000 tonnes came from its Norwegian farms while 6,600 tonnes was slaughtered at its Icelandic Salmon operations. First quarter harvests are usually lower than those during the rest of the year due to various winter-related issues
SalMar has hugely expanded its salmon ownership following the acquisition of the NTS group, which includes Norway Royal Salmon and SalmoNor, late last year.
As a result the company has indicated that it expects to harvest 243,000 tonnes from Norway (plus 16,100 tonnes from Iceland) this year against 193,700 tonnes for the whole of 2022.
The figures from Scottish Sea Farms, which SalMar owns jointly with Lerøy Seafood, are not included in the trading update but should become available when the full report is published next month. However, an increased SSF harvest is widely expected this year.
Meanwhile, Måsøval’s slaughter volume came to 1,994 tonnes gutted weight (gwt) against 3,284 tonnes this time last year.
The company is based on the island of Frøya, at the far end of the Trøndelag coast.
It also has facilities in the neighbouring municipality of Hitra, and from Levanger in the north to Ørsta in the south.
Måsøval also owns a large share in the fish farming company Laxar Fiskeldi, based in Iceland which it co-owns in a strategic partnership with the Icelandic fishing company Ísfélag Vestmannaeyja.
