“We are sharpening our role as a sparring partner for the seafood industry and the authorities,” said NSC CEO Christian Chramer.
Photo: Norwegian Seafood Council
The Norwegian Seafood Council is reducing the size of its management team and reorganising its operations from 1 September, as lower market-fee revenues put pressure on its budget.
The new structure consolidates some existing functions, including marketing and communications, as the Seafood Council reduces its number of departments from five to four: Global Operations, Marketing and Communications, Insights and Business Advisory, and Business Management.
The changes follow cuts to the market fees that finance the Tromsø-based organisation's activities, announced by the Norwegian government earlier this year and introduced from 1 June. Market fees are applied to seafood exports based on their value, and are used to finance all of the council’s activities, including marketing and market insight to boost demand for Norwegian seafood.
As previously reported by WeAreAquaculture, the fee for conventional seafood products was reduced from 0.75% to 0.4%, while the rate for pelagic species fell from 0.5% to 0.3%.
When the cuts were originally announced in March, the Seafood Council estimated that, on a full-year basis, the changes would reduce its budget from NOK 659m (€60.5m/$70.7m) to NOK 602m (€55.3m/$64.6m), with the full effect expected to be felt from 2027 - prompting CEO Christian Chramer to warn that lower revenues could result in the “downscaling or discontinuation of certain activities”.
Announcing the changes today, the organisation says its new structure has been adapted to the lower budget, while also aiming to make it easier for staff to work across disciplines and respond to a more unpredictable global seafood market.
“The Norwegian seafood industry operates in a world market that is changing faster and more unpredictably than before. That is why we are equipping the Norwegian Seafood Council even better to see around the next turn, deliver strategically important insights and be the seafood industry's guide in rapidly changing waters,” Chramer said.
Under the new structure, the Seafood Council said it will retain specialist expertise in individual species and products, while establishing a permanent point of contact for the industry.
“We are sharpening our role as a sparring partner for the seafood industry and the authorities. This means that we, even in a more flexible organization, ensure the unique expertise in species and products, and establish a permanent point of contact for the industry,” Chramer said.
The organisation also plans to bring its work on data analysis and artificial intelligence more closely together.
“For example, we are pooling and strengthening our work with data analysis and artificial intelligence. This will benefit the seafood industry in the form of tailored services and better insights to support decision-making,” Chramer said.
Norwegian Seafood lit up Times Square for Norwegian seafood during this summer's World Cup with Haaland as the frontman for the campaign "Eat your best, be your best".
Photo: Trude Bessesen for NSC
The restructuring comes as the Seafood Council prepares to take on an additional national responsibility from 2027, when it will take over the organisation and management of Norway’s pavilions at the major seafood trade fairs in Boston, Barcelona and Qingdao from Innovation Norway.
The Seafood Council said the new organisation was developed using feedback from its five market groups and industry user surveys, as well as discussions with its board and elected representatives.
Chramer will continue as CEO. The management team will also include Børge Grønbech as Director of Global Operations, Martin Skaug as Director of Marketing and Communications, Kathrine Tveiterås as Director of Insights and Business Advisory, and Maria Nyang-Jørgensen as acting Director of Corporate Governance.
