Norway posted the highest seafood export value in its history in 2024, defying mid-year predictions of a downturn after a tumultuous start to the year.
According to data compiled by the Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC), Norway exported seafood worth NOK 175.4 billion (USD 15.5 billion, EUR 14.9 billion) in 2024 – an increase of NOK 3.7 billion (USD 327 million, EUR 315 million) over 2025. By volume, the country exported 2.8 million metric tons (MT) of seafood products – which according to the NSC accounts for 38 million meals every day year round.
The 2024 totals were capped off by NOK 15.1 billion (USD 1.33 billion, EUR 1.28 billion) in sales in December 2024, an increase of NOK 1.5 billion (USD 132 million, EUR 127 million), or 11 percent, over the same period of 2023.
The successful year for Norway’s seafood exports came despite predictions mid-year that the industry could face a downturn in 2024. The country posted a decline in its seafood export value in Q1 2024 – ending a three-year streak of year-over-year export value records. Then, in June 2024, Norway saw a historic 18-percent drop in its seafood export value, the largest single-month drop in seafood export value in its history.
That had NSC CEO Christian Chramer predicting the latter half of 2024 could be difficult.
“We do not predict a crash landing because seafood from Norway is strong. But, there is no escaping the fact that there are some dark clouds on the horizon,” Chramer said at the time.
Those dark clouds quickly cleared as the country’s export value rose again in July 2024 and continued rising after that. The country posted the best-ever November in terms of seafood export value, and its increase in December helped push it toward new record highs for the full year.
Chramer said the high export values are a result of ...
