– There is more than enough to do here. And there will be more in the future. Daniel Moen and Leo André Berg have received apprenticeships as industrial mechanics at Frydenbø Industri AS in Øksfjord. The aquaculture industry creates great value along the Norwegian coast. In 2021, exports of salmon and trout in Norway alone amounted to a value of NOK 84 billion. This according to Nofima. In comparison, the defense budget last year was NOK 69 billion. In 2020, just over 7,000 people had their work with the production of food fish. Of these, 2,700 worked in northern Norway. In 2020, a total of 54,000 people were employed in aquaculture. In addition, there are jobs and value creation in companies that supply goods and services to the industry. The figures are taken from a Nofima report published in April, and a Menon report published in October 2021. However, the medal has a flip side. The industry is insulted after years of extensive salmon escapes, chemical use, salmon lice and littering of Norwegian fjords. The sum has been mass deaths of smolts, trout and shellfish. Permanent job in view Frydenbø Industri AS is one of the many companies that indirectly benefit from the breeders. About 70 percent of their turnover comes from maintenance of the boats of Grieg Seafood and Cermaq. The apprentices Moen and Berg tell about long days and full order books. – We would never have got an apprenticeship here without the assignments from the fish farming companies. And now they also want to give us a permanent job when we have taken the certificate, Moen and Berg say. Leo André Berg has more than enough to hang his fingers on at Frydenbø Industri in Øksfjord, thanks to many assignments from the aquaculture industry. Photo: André Bendixen / news – Means a lot for the local communities It is not only Loppa municipality, with its around 840 inhabitants, that benefits from the farmers. Rolf Røtnes at Samfunnsøkonomisk analyze AS believes that the industry is a being or not being for many small communities. – The fish farming industry creates work in many small municipalities. An example is Steigen in Nordland. There, 40 percent of the jobs are directly or indirectly linked to Cermaq alone. – So the aquaculture industry is very important for many small communities, says Røtnes. – The fish farming industry has become a very important industry in Norway, and creates great value in the local communities, says Rolf Røtnes at Samfunnsøkonomisk Analyze AS. Photo: Samfunnsøkonomisk Analyze AS And that is exactly what the principal at Kvalfjord school at Stjernøya in Alta, Martin Westmark, can sign. – For a settlement like Kvalfjord, the farming companies are incredibly important. Yes, in fact absolutely necessary to keep the school and society going, says Westmark. The school district has about 100 inhabitants, and there is both a school and a shop on site. Most people who live there work directly or indirectly with salmon farming. – The fish farming companies keep Kvalfjord alive, says principal at Kvalfjord school, Martin Westmark. Photo: Private – Is not alone Regional director of Cermaq Finnmark, Gunnar Gudmundsson, is proud of the values the company creates. And then not only in their own business, but in many other industries. – We have 28 boats that need maintenance and repairs. And we are lucky to be able to buy these services from local businesses. In this case Frydenbø Industri AS. Regional director of Cermaq Finnmark, Gunnar Gudmundsson, is pleased that the company contributes to value creation and jobs in society. Photo: Jan Harald Tomassen / news – So it is not we alone who create the values and jobs. We do this in collaboration with many different actors in the entire region, says Gudmundsson. Want more people in work The mayor of Loppa municipality, Stein Thomassen (Labor Party), confirms that more local companies get large parts of their turnover from farming. – We have got a line on the fish farm that produces the fish fillet. In addition, we have the feed factory that produces feed for the aquaculture industry. The local shops have also increased their turnover after the fish farmers came to the municipality. The mayor, on the other hand, would like more of the village’s inhabitants to work in the industry. – The breeders want to hire flea markets. But then the locals have to be more on and actually look for work there. Today, around 60 jobs are associated with farming in Loppa municipality. – There are very positive ripple effects from Loppa municipality when it comes to the aquaculture industry, says mayor of Loppa municipality Stein Thomassen (Labor). Nevertheless, he could wish for a greater income for the use of the municipality’s land. Photo: André Bendixen / news Can increase operations On 7 June, the Ministry of Trade and Industry updated the traffic light model for aquaculture in Norway. There, the whole of northern Norway got the green light. This means that farmers of salmon, trout and rainbow trout can increase production by 6 percent next year. – We are now ensuring further growth in the areas where the impact of salmon lice on wild salmon is acceptable. This can contribute to creating more jobs, more Norwegian food production, greater value creation and increased export revenues for Norway, says Minister of Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Bjørnar Skjæran.
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Several thousand farms in farming along the Norwegian coast create great value
