Norwegian seafood exports reached a record NOK 14 billion (USD 2.5 billion, EUR 1.8 billion) in the first quarter of 2011, up 14 percent from the same three-month period last year, the Norwegian Seafood Export Council reported on Monday.
In March alone, Norwegian seafood exports totaled a record NOK 5 billion, up NOK 409 million from the same month last year.
The reason, of course, is higher seafood prices — particularly higher salmon, mackerel and herring prices — as the value of Norwegian seafood, on average, was up 46 percent in the first quarter of 2011, said Egil Ove Sundheim, the council’s market information director.
In the first quarter of 2011, Norwegian salmon exports totaled NOK 7.5 billion, up 17 percent from the same period last year. In March, the average price for fresh whole salmon came to NOK 40.70, up from NOK 36.04 in March 2010 and from NOK 40.46 in February.
