"Aquaculture is already a significant component of Icelandic merchandise exports," said Radarinn.
Photo: Haukur Sigurdsson / Radarinn.
The forecasts of the Icelandic fisheries and aquaculture industry directory, Radarinn, which said in December that it was pretty clear that a record year was ahead, have come true. 2024 marked this record year for the value of Iceland's aquaculture exports.
As expected, the November blip - when the upward streak in the value of Icelandic aquaculture exports was broken at a time when it seemed unstoppable after breaking records in July, August, September, and October - did not stop the trend and Iceland closed last year with an export value of aquaculture products amounting to nearly ISK 54 billion (EUR 373.1 million / USD 382.5 million), the highest ever recorded.
According to Radarinn, the export revenue from fish farming increased by more than 16% over 2023. This meant that, in 2024, the export value of aquaculture products accounted for more than 15% of the export value of seafood products and approximately 6% of the total export value of goods in Iceland. These proportions have also never been higher.
"It is clear to all that aquaculture is already a significant component of Icelandic merchandise exports and will undoubtedly contribute even more in the coming years," the Icelandic dashboard of the fishing and aquaculture industry said in its release assessing the preliminary figures from Statistics Iceland on trade in December.
"This development is highly positive, as aquaculture increases diversity in exports and strengthens the country's foreign currency earnings, with corresponding positive effects on employment and communities across the country," Radarinn continued.
Preliminary December figures provided by Statistics Iceland do not include a breakdown of export value by aquaculture species - they will be published later in the month - but it did publish such more detailed data for November.
During the first eleven months of 2024, the export value of farmed salmon reached more than ISK 40 billion (EUR 276.4 million / USD 283.3 million), an increase of approximately 19% compared to the same period in 2023.
Likewise, although, as expected, cod ranked first, salmon generated the second-highest export value of all fish species exported from Iceland between January and November last year, 30% higher than that of haddock, which ranked third on this list.
"Salmon thus holds a dominant position in second place, and based on production forecasts, the gap is expected to widen further in the coming years," Radarinn concluded.
However, while the export value of salmon continues to grow, that of trout, predominantly Arctic char, recorded a 17% decline in the first eleven months of 2024 compared to the same period last year.
In the first eleven months of 2024, the export value of trout amounted to about ISK 4.2 billion (EUR 29 million / USD 29.7 million) compared to more than ISK 5 billion (EUR 34.5 million / USD 35.4 million) in 2023.
A similar trend to that of trout is seen with fertilized eggs, a high-tech, high-value product that, from January to November 2024, reached an export value of just under ISK 1.9 billion (EUR 13.1 million / USD 13.4 million), a decrease of 29% year-on-year.
Finally, Statistics Iceland also provided data on export earnings for Senegalese sole - one of the world's most valuable food fish - during the first eleven months of the year. In this case, and in contrast to trout and fertilized eggs, these revenues have never been higher during the specified period.
The export value of Senegalese sole reached ISK 1.4 billion (EUR 9.6 million / USD 9.9 million), representing an increase of 81% year-on-year.
