Norway '09 seafood exports sets record again

In 2009, Norwegian seafood exports totalled NOK44.7 billion (US$7.81 billion), marking yet another record year for the fishing industry.

According to figures from the Norwegian Seafood Export Council (NSEC), exports are up by no less than NOK6 billion (US$1.04 billion) as compared to 2008. The volume of seafood exports totalled 2.6 million tonnes, an increase of 268,000 tonnes from last year.

NSEC managing director Terje E. Martinussen noted that demand for Norwegian seafood in 2009 exceeded all expectations, adding that the demand for Norwegian salmon in particular has contributed significantly to the total value of exports.

"At the same time, we are seeing that traditional seafood products such as salted fish, clipfish and stockfish of cod are dependent on a small number of dominant markets and are therefore much more susceptible to market fluctuations, which is why 2009 proved a poor year for many players who are dependent on cod," said Terje.

Salmon export alone increased NOK5.8 billion (US$1.01 billion) to NOK23.7 billion (US$4.14 billion), while herring increased 7% for the year. On the negative side, exports of salted cod were down by NOK495 million (US$86.5 million) to a total of NOK738 million (US$129 million) in 2009, while cod clipfish totalled NOK1.7 billion (US$297.2 billion), the same as in 2008. Total stockfish exports showed a slight increase in 2009 to end at NOK616 million (US$107.7 million).

Exports to France totalled NOK4.7 billion (US$821.7 million) in 2009, an increase of NOK668 million (US$116.7 million) compared with 2008. This places France as Norway's biggest market in 2009, followed by Russia in second place with an export value of NOK4.6 billion (US$804.2 million), up by NOK662 million (US$115.7 million) from 2008.

In terms of value, US showed the biggest growth with an increase of NOK879 million (US$153.6 million). For the year 2009, seafood exports to the US totalled NOK1.8 billion (US$314.6 million), positioning the US ninth most important seafood market.

Meanwhile, Portugal showed the biggest decline in the value of seafood exports, down by NOK425 million (US$74.3 million) to end at NOK1.6billion (US$279.7 million). Seafood exports to the EU increased by NOK3.2 billion (US$559.4 million) to a total of NOK26.4 billion (US$4.61 billion), equal to 59% of total seafood exports.