Norway exported 50,800 metric tons (MT) of fresh cod worth NOK 1.8 billion (USD 218.2 million, EUR 188 million) in the first six months of this year. While this represented a 5-percent drop in volume compared with the first-half of 2017, higher prices raised the export value by 2 percent or NOK 45 million (USD 5.5 million, EUR 4.7 million).
"Measured in Norwegian kroner we have never had a stronger half-year for fresh cod. With reduced cod quotas this year, it is the price of fresh whole cod that drives the value increase in the freshwater category,” said Ingrid Kristine Pettersen, analyst with the Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC).
The Scandinavian country also exported 39,000 MT of frozen cod with a value of NOK 1.4 billion (USD 169.8 million, EUR 146.3 million). While this volume was on par with H1 2017, the value was 11 percent or NOK 138 million (USD 16.7 million, EUR 14.4 million) higher.
Overall, Norway exported 1.4 million MT of seafood worth a record NOK 48.1 billion (USD 5.8 billion, EUR 5 billion) in the first-half of the year.
For 2017 as a whole, the country shipped a record 2.6 million MT of seafood worth NOK 94.5 billion (USD 11.5 billion, EUR 9.9 billion).
