Norwegian whitefish exporters shipped cod, haddock, saithe and other products worth a total NOK 13.8 billion (USD 1.6 billion, EUR 1.5 billion) last year, surpassing the 2015 export record by 6 percent or NOK 800 million (USD 93.7 million, EUR 89 million), reported the Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC).
The whitefish sector’s performance in 2016 represented the third record year in a row, not just in terms of the final export value but also in the primary value, which amounted to almost NOK 11 billion (USD 1.3 billion, EUR 1.2 billion).
NSC analyst Kristine Pettersen highlighted that the quotas have remained relatively stable over the past three years, but that the sector has been seeing prices increase for major products.
Currency effects have contributed to the record value, but to a lesser extent than in 2015, she said.
“The growth has been strongest for fresh and frozen products, while conventional business has had a challenging year.”
Included in the export value total were NOK 3.2 billion (USD 374.9 million, EUR 356 million) worth of fresh whitefish products, up 14 percent or NOK 385 million (USD 45.1 million, EUR 42.8 million) compared to 2015.
Leading the growth, fresh saithe exports increased by 6,364 metric tons (MT) or 62 percent to 16,698 MT with a value of NOK 258 million (USD 30.2 million, EUR 28.7 million), which was an increase of 63 percent from 2015. Most of the fresh saithe goes to Denmark and an increasing share is exported to Poland for processing and export.
Exports of fresh cod products, meanwhile, increased by 11 percent or NOK 209 million (USD 24.5 million, EUR 23.2 million). Prices also increased by 10 percent.
However, Norway’s fresh haddock exports decreased 7 percent in value to NOK 405 million (USD 47.4 million, EUR 45 million). The United Kingdom was the main export market for haddock in 2016 and it was also the market where the decline was the most prominent.
Norway also exported frozen whitefish products worth NOK 4.9 billion (USD 573.9 million, EUR 544.8 million) last year, up 15 percent or NOK 634 million (USD 74.3 million, EUR 70.5 million). This increase was mainly attributed to a volume increase of 26,539 tonnes or 16 percent.
The Scandinavian country exported 86,976 MT of frozen cod with a value of NOK 2.7 billion (USD 316.3 million, EUR 300.2 million) in 2016, an increase of 27 percent or NOK 577 million (USD 67.6 million, EUR 64.2 million) from the previous year. There was also an increase of more than 50 percent in exports of frozen haddock products, while prices declined by 16 percent. The total export value of this category grew by 27 percent to just over NOK 1 billion (USD 117.1 million, EUR 111.2 million).
Following a reduction in exports of frozen whitefish to China in 2015, the trade to the market has been increasing again and was worth NOK 1.6 billion (USD 187.4 million, EUR 177.9 million) in 2016, representing an increase of 25 percent or NOK 316 million (USD 37 million, EUR 35.1 million) from 2015, said NSC.
Overall, Norwegian exporters shipped fisheries and aquaculture products with a record total value of NOK 91.6 billion (USD 10.7 billion, EUR 10.2 billion) last year, up 23 percent or NOK 17 billion (USD 2 billion, EUR 1.9 billion) compared with 2015. In total, Norway exported seafood to 146 countries last year.
