The prices didn’t come as a total surprise; as early as January, there were forecasts that there would be plenty of fish in the autumn and prices would be low. Add to that the good growth and sea lice mentioned in the article. Good growth also leads to an increase in harvesting volumes because Norway operates according to biomass limits. Prices actually dropped 10 crowns even lower than that forecast.
Below is the forecast for the rest of the year:
Below is the week 37 realization in the index:
Regarding Finland, it must be remembered that a large part of the trade is conducted at spot prices, which exists in its own pricing world.
I spoke with a rainbow trout producer who said that Norwegian salmon is currently making trading difficult.
Fifax’s deal with Kalavapriikki brings certainty to sales and provides a good foundation for production. There are also risks, such as the buyer’s solvency and the selling of a continuous product stream. It also ties their hands when market prices would allow for asking more. Of course, we don’t know if the price is pegged to something or what the price level is.
In Finland, the fall and early winter generally see a decline in rainbow trout prices, which usually bottoms out around early December when roe fish are harvested as much as possible. Fifax’s start at this moment is not optimal, but the fixed deal will hopefully ease this.