Salmon prices take a hit

Salmon prices across producing countries in the northern hemisphere are falling sharply, wiping out many of the the gains made just a few weeks ago.

In Norway from a high of NOK 63 a kilo in late May, they were down by NOK 10 to NOK 53 a kilo this week with predictions of further reductions to come. One forecast suggests price levels of NOK 45 a kilo in the weeks ahead. Prices are also down in Scotland and producers are expecting them to drop further next week.

A combination of factors are thought to be behind the reversal in fortunes. Following a new upsurge in Covid-19 cases in Beijing, demand from China has weakened despite salmon being ruled out as the source of the infection. This has also had a knock effect for other countries such as Scotland and Iceland.

The anti-fish farming lobby is also working overtime and Norwegian companies have also been the subject of recent critical television documentaries in France and which some think is impacting on sales. One of the German programmes was filmed at a Grieg Seafood plant in Finnmark (Grieg also has operations in Shetland) and when asked why the TV crew was let in the company said it had an open information policy, adding that sustainable fish farming was at the heart of its business.

The arrival of a heatwave across Europe this week is also likely to further weaken demand. All these issues had a negative impact on seafood share prices on the Oslo Stock Exchange yesterday.