The Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries' profitability survey for 2024 indicates a significant reduction in financial results for companies in the salmon and rainbow trout production chain.
Total ordinary profit before tax for the sector fell to NOK14.3 billion ($1.3 billion), a decrease of 32 per cent from the NOK21.2 billion recorded in 2023.
The directorate attributed the decline to a combination of factors, primarily reduced selling prices per kilogram and persistently high costs. The survey noted that results are influenced by structural changes many companies implemented ahead of the introduction of the resource rent tax in 2023, meaning figures before and after this date are not fully comparable.
Breakdowns show that food fish production contributed NOK11.5 billion to the total, while hatcheries contributed NOK2.8 billion.
Companies with hatchery production accounted for 19.6 per cent of the total ordinary profit in 2024, an increase from 13.3 per cent in 2023.
Despite the profit drop, the average total cost per kilogram of fish produced in the food fish segment saw a slight decrease from the previous year, ending at NOK64.64 in 2024.