Sales at record levels, but prices are under pressure

Surofi (Sunnmøre og Romsdal Fiskesalslag) sells whitefish and shellfish from Norwegian and foreign fishermen landed in Sunnmøre og Romsdal. After a solid record year in 2022, it is pleasing that 2023 also came out with sales at almost the same level, far above what we expected when the year started.

Main points:

• Revenue in 2023 reached NOK 3,270 million, a small decrease of 2% from 2022.
• 142,804 tonnes of fish and shellfish were traded (converted to round weight), a decrease of 2% from the previous year.
• Declining prices throughout the year

The high turnover also in 2023 is due to the fact that the average prices for the year overall were on par with the previous year and that an expected lower quantity of cod (due to a quota reduction) was partly compensated by an increased quantity of other species, especially haddock.

Saithe, which has historically been a very important species for fishing and sales in our district, is still the species that provides the highest quantity in our sales. However, it is a concern that the seasonal fishing off Møre in the winter has declined, partly due to a lack of herring spawning. Therefore, a smaller share of the saithe quota is caught in our immediate area. This also affects the landing pattern.

The prices of whitefish are largely affected by the currency situation, since the vast majority of products are exported. The weakening of the Norwegian krone against other currencies has therefore contributed to keeping prices higher for the fleet and the seafood industry as a whole than they would otherwise have been. Despite this, there has been a significant drop in prices for important species such as saithe, haddock and the smallest sizes of cod in the last half of 2023. Weakened purchasing power among consumers in all important export markets has led to lower demand and falling prices towards the end of the year.

Declining cod quotas this year and next, in addition to uncertainty about future price developments, dampen expectations going forward. But it is important to remember that over time, the development in the whitefish market has been very positive with increased demand and prices. There is no reason to let pessimism take over!

(For more detailed statistics, see also the 2023 Revenue Report .)

Turnover last 10 years Surofi

The blue bars show turnover in value (1000 NOK, see left axis)
Red line shows turnover in quantity (tonnes, see right axis)
Green line shows the development in average price per kg of round fish (see right axis: E.g. 100000 = 10 NOK)

Development in first-hand price (NOK/kg) of important fish species in Surofi over the last 10 years