Norway’s salmon farmers had the best month in their history in October 2026. Its wild fishermen had one of the worst. That split is the story of the Norwegian Seafood Council’s (NSC) October export figures, published on 4 November 2026: salmon exports hit an all-time monthly record of NOK 13 billion, while cod, mackerel and clipfish volumes kept sliding to multi-decade lows — and total seafood exports were essentially flat at NOK 18.2 billion.
Salmon alone now accounts for more than 70% of the value of everything Norway sells from the sea. Farmed fish supplied 76% of October’s export value, up from 72% a year earlier. The wild catch, squeezed by the lowest cod quotas since 1991, is shrinking in volume even as its prices break records. This article breaks down the official numbers species by species, explains why record prices are not good news for everyone, and says what it means for the global seafood market India trades in.
Note on the banner image: it is an illustration of a salmon leaping in a Norwegian fjord, not a photograph of the October exports.
October 2026 at a glance
| Total seafood exports, October | NOK 18.2 billion — down NOK 48 million vs October 2025 (virtually unchanged) |
| Total seafood exports, Jan–Oct 2026 | NOK 151.3 billion — up NOK 2.2 billion (+1%) vs same period 2025 |
| Farmed fish, October | NOK 13.8 billion — 76% of total export value (72% a year earlier) |
| Salmon, October | 159,810 tonnes worth NOK 13 billion — highest monthly value ever |
| Salmon change vs Oct 2025 | Value +6% (+NOK 734 million); volume +9% |
| Previous salmon record | September 2026 — October beat it by NOK 264 million |
| Wild-catch trend | Volumes down across cod, mackerel, clipfish, salted fish and stockfish |
| Currency effect | Stronger Norwegian krone vs US dollar and euro reduced NOK-denominated values |
| Source | Norwegian Seafood Council release, 4 November 2026 |
Salmon: a second straight monthly record
Norway exported 159,810 tonnes of salmon worth NOK 13 billion in October. The value rose by NOK 734 million, or 6%, compared with October 2025, while volume grew 9%. October’s figure is the highest export value for salmon ever recorded in a single month — NOK 264 million above the previous record set only a month earlier, in September 2026, when we reported 165,393 tonnes worth NOK 13 billion. Two monthly records in a row is the clearest sign yet of how strong global demand for Norwegian salmon is right now.
“Strong volume growth, combined with higher salmon prices in local currencies in the export markets, reflects the strong growth in demand for Norwegian salmon at the moment,” said Paul T. Aandahl, market analyst at the Norwegian Seafood Council.
Poland, the Netherlands and France were the largest salmon markets in October. Poland is the story within the story: its salmon imports rose NOK 246 million (+12%) in value to 32,664 tonnes (+15% in volume). So far in 2026, Poland has taken 225,000 tonnes (+27%) worth NOK 5.2 billion (+5%). The NSC notes that as Norwegian salmon exports to Poland increase, both domestic consumption and re-exports are growing — Polish household consumption is up 19% so far this year, while export volumes from Poland have risen 10%. Rising purchasing power has made Poland one of the fastest-growing salmon consumer markets in recent years, according to Aandahl.
Wild catch: record prices, shrinking volumes
For wild-caught species the picture is the mirror image of salmon: prices at all-time highs, volumes at multi-decade lows. The cause is quotas. Throughout 2026, low quotas for several wild species have produced very low export volumes and record-high prices for a string of products.
“High export prices do not tell the whole story. Lower quotas also mean less raw material available at higher prices for parts of the seafood industry. This creates challenges for companies seeking to maintain production and further value creation,” said Christian Chramer, CEO of the Norwegian Seafood Council.
| Species / product | October volume | October value | What happened |
| Mackerel | 13,787 t (−50%) | NOK 758m (−45%) | Whole frozen price hit a record NOK 54/kg; YTD volume −54% to 81,368 t |
| Fresh cod | 2,498 t (−5%) | NOK 214m (+6%) | Farmed cod now 65% of fresh-cod export value; wild fresh cod −14% in volume |
| Frozen cod | 2,745 t (−8%) | NOK 267m (−6%) | YTD volume 23,100 t (−26%) — lowest Jan–Oct since 1991 |
| Clipfish | 6,921 t (−18%) | NOK 916m (−3%) | Lowest October volume since 1995; Portugal down 29% |
| Salted fish | 1,297 t (−39%) | NOK 176m (−31%) | Portugal took 95% of salted-cod volume; its imports fell 38% |
| Stockfish | 267 t (−32%) | NOK 128m (−10%) | Cod stockfish price hit a record NOK 532/kg (+34%) |
| Herring | 16,197 t (−4%) | NOK 445m (+17%) | Frozen fillet price record NOK 27/kg; whole frozen NOK 22/kg |
| Trout | 6,954 t (−15%) | NOK 629m (−9%) | But Poland’s trout imports jumped 87% in value |
| King crab | 134 t (+24%) | NOK 72m (−6%) | US price for frozen king crab −16% amid a 12.5% tariff |
| Snow crab | 78 t (+28%) | NOK 13m (+12%) | Fishery closed until 1 December; USA took 63% of volume |
| Prawns | 2,345 t (−11%) | NOK 166m (+5%) | Peeled-prawn price hit a record NOK 140/kg despite volume −55% |
Two details deserve attention. First, farmed cod is quietly taking over the cod trade: farmed cod supplied 65% of the export value of fresh cod in October, and 46% so far this year against 36% in the same period last year. The United Kingdom stands out — its imports of Norwegian farmed cod rose 182% to 123 tonnes in October and 450% so far this year to 711 tonnes, against just 23 tonnes of wild cod. Second, mackerel’s collapse is a quota story, not a demand story: export volume halved in October and is down 54% this year, yet the whole-frozen price reached a record NOK 54 per kg, NOK 2 above the previous record set in September 2026. Asian markets — South Korea, Japan and Vietnam — felt it most.
Where Norway’s seafood went: the top 10 markets
| Rank | Market | October value | Change vs Oct 2025 |
| 1 | Poland | NOK 2.75 billion | +13% |
| 2 | USA | NOK 1.2 billion | −11% |
| 3 | China | NOK 1.16 billion | +12% |
| 4 | Netherlands | NOK 1.15 billion | +5% |
| 5 | France | NOK 1.05 billion | 0% |
| 6 | Denmark | NOK 952 million | −3% |
| 7 | United Kingdom | NOK 903 million | 0% |
| 8 | Spain | NOK 890 million | +4% |
| 9 | Portugal | NOK 730 million | −15% |
| 10 | Italy | NOK 656 million | −4% |
The pattern is consistent with the rest of 2026: growth in exports to Poland and China, while exports to the US keep declining, driven by lower volumes of fresh and frozen salmon fillets. Portugal’s 15% fall is the clipfish story — it is Norway’s largest market for cod clipfish (bacalhau), and with Christmas approaching, the NSC’s Portugal envoy notes that November and December will decide how the year ends for that trade. Portuguese retail sales of traditional dried cod have already fallen 15% this year while prices rose 26%.
The krone factor
One number in the release is easy to miss but explains why a flat total hides strong demand: the Norwegian krone was significantly stronger in October than a year earlier against both the US dollar and the euro. That reduced export values measured in kroner even where prices in buyers’ own currencies rose. In other words, the NOK 18.2 billion total understates the real demand growth — salmon volumes rose 9% and prices rose in local currencies, yet the kroner total barely moved. Currency, not demand, is what kept October flat.
Why Indian readers should care
Norway is the world’s largest farmed-salmon exporter, so its monthly figures set the tone for global salmon prices — including the salmon India imports and the farmed-salmon benchmarks Indian aquaculture measures itself against. Three lessons stand out:
- Farmed fish now carries the industry. At 76% of Norway’s seafood export value, farming has overtaken the wild catch as the economic engine. India’s aquaculture sector — already the backbone of its fisheries output — is moving the same way, and Norway shows both the upside (record values, stable supply) and the risk (dependence on a single species’ price). Compare with Chile, the other salmon-farming giant, which sold 557,532 tonnes in eight months.
- Volume is not value. Norway’s wild catch shows the opposite of a boom: record prices with collapsing volumes, because quotas were cut to protect stocks. That is the same arithmetic behind Peru cancelling its anchovy season when 79% of the fish were juveniles — protecting tomorrow’s catch costs today’s income, and honest reporting has to show both sides.
- Global context matters. Norway’s NOK 151.3 billion in ten months sits inside a world market of 235 million tonnes documented in FAO’s SOFIA 2026 report. When the world’s biggest salmon exporter sets two monthly records in a row while its wild cod hits 35-year volume lows, the signal for every seafood-exporting country — India included — is that farming growth and wild-stock restraint are now the same story, not two different ones.
Frequently asked questions
How much salmon did Norway export in October 2026?
159,810 tonnes worth NOK 13 billion — the highest monthly salmon export value ever recorded, beating the September 2026 record by NOK 264 million.
How much seafood did Norway export in total in October 2026?
NOK 18.2 billion, down NOK 48 million on October 2025 — virtually unchanged. So far in 2026, exports total NOK 151.3 billion, up 1% on the same period last year.
Why were total exports flat if salmon set a record?
Because wild-caught species fell sharply — mackerel volume halved, frozen cod hit its lowest January–October volume since 1991, and clipfish its lowest October volume since 1995 — and a stronger Norwegian krone reduced values measured in kroner.
Which countries buy the most Norwegian seafood?
Poland (NOK 2.75 billion, +13%), the USA (NOK 1.2 billion, −11%) and China (NOK 1.16 billion, +12%) led in October; Poland, the Netherlands and France were the top salmon markets.
Is farmed cod really replacing wild cod?
In the fresh-cod export trade, yes, increasingly: farmed cod was 65% of fresh-cod export value in October and 46% so far this year, up from 36% a year earlier. Wild cod volumes are constrained by the lowest quotas since 1991.
What happens next?
November’s figures will show whether salmon sets a third straight record and whether Portugal’s Christmas bacalhau season recovers after a 29% October fall in clipfish volume. Norway’s snow crab fishery also reopens on 1 December.
Official links and sources
- Norwegian Seafood Council — Norwegian seafood exports remained stable in October (release, 4 November 2026) — primary source for every figure in this article
- FishFocus — Norwegian Seafood Exports Remained Stable in October (4 November 2026) — full text of the same NSC release
All figures in this article are taken from the Norwegian Seafood Council release of 4 November 2026. Where the release gives no figure — for example, no breakdown of salmon by product form beyond the totals — this article gives none. Check the official NSC release for the full text before citing this post elsewhere.