As planned, Kenneth Andersen, CEO of Strawberry Equities AS, was appointed to the board of the land-based salmon company Atlantic Sapphire at the last extraordinary general meeting held yesterday. According to the official stock exchange announcement issued by the company, he was elected "in accordance with the recommendation of the nomination committee".
Andersen's entry onto Atlantic Sapphire board has been expected since Strawberry Equities AS became a major shareholder in the company after increasing its stake last June. The Norwegian investor Petter Anker Stordalen company owns now more than 4.1 million shares in the salmon land-based firm.
According to the statement sent to the stock exchange, the election of the CEO of Strawberry Equities was approved "with the required majority" and "with an election period until the annual general meeting in 2023". This was an announced appointment and Andersen had already accepted the position in advance, subject to election at this extraordinary general meeting.
As announced, Kenneth Andersen has had the opportunity to join the Atlantic Sapphire board after Runar Vatne, the land-based producer's second-largest shareholder, offered to voluntarily resign from the board of directors. In statements to WeAreAquaculture, the salmon company has expressed its gratitude to the outgoing board member, as well as its satisfaction with the new addition.
"First of all, Atlantic Sapphire wants to thank Mr. Runar Vatne for his valuable contributions to the board over the last years", arl Øystein Øyehaug, Chief Financing Officer and Managing Director of Atlantic Sapphire, has told us. "We're also very pleased to see one of our largest investors, Strawberry, represented in the board. Mr. Kenneth Andersen has a strong track record both as an independent board member and from the financial industry", he has concluded.
Atlantic Sapphire is a pioneer in Bluehouse® (land-raised) salmon farming, locally. The company has been operating its innovation center in Denmark since 2011 with a strong focus on R&D and innovation to achieve production in end markets close to the consumer. In the United States, the company has identified and obtained the necessary permits to build its Bluehouse® in the location of Homestead, Florida, south of Miami. The company has completed Phase 1 of construction, which provides the capacity to harvest approximately 10,000 tons (HOG) of salmon per year, and is currently constructing the Phase 2 expansion, which will bring the total annual production capacity to 25,000 tons. Its target for 2031 is to achieve a harvest volume of 220,000 tons.
Strawberry is a leading Norwegian investment firm operating in a wide range of industries. Their investment philosophy focuses on people and sustainable business models because, as they state, "only when capital is combined with extraordinary people and sustainability, can high value creation be unleashed".