Stavanger, Norway-based Eir of Norway is launching a new high-end sea cucumber product in two countries in Asia.
The product, called Viking Power, was given trials in eight separate national markets, and two in Asia have been chose for the company’s first full-scale target markets, according to Eir of Norway Business Development Director Gunnar Hølland.
“This will be Norway's most expensive seafood product sold for several thousand [Norwegian kroner] in dried form,” he said.
Shunned in Europe, sea cucumber is popular in China and other Asian markets, Hølland said. The company has developed a proprietary drying process that retains the quality of the locally sourced product, Hølland said.
“Their full-scale Norwegian production of the red sea cucumber opens up further activity and sources of income for both fishermen and dryers along the Norwegian coast,” he said. “The peak season takes place in the late autumn in conjunction with shopping for the Chinese New Year, where it is eaten as a feast or given as a gift symbolizing health and status.”
Hølland said the company has achieved full orders well in advance of the peak season for sea cucumber, even with the coronavirus causing major disruptions to the global seafood marketplace.
“Based on our orders, we believe that the market in Asia will be ready earlier than in the Nordic countries,” Hølland said. “This is good for us and our Norwegian fishermen as our main market is in Asia.”
Photo courtesy of Eir of Norway
