Norway sees the potential of boosting trade of fresh salmon in the Philippines.
“There is so much potential for growth for exports in the Philippines,” said Norwegian Ambassador to the Philippines Christian Halaas Lyster.
The Philippines lags in trade for seafood compared to its peers in the region such as Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, and Taiwan.
“We see further increase of demands for salmon exports in the Philippines market and we want to take the opportunity of the growing consumer demand for fresh market ingredients here,” Lyster added.
The Philippines has reported an increase of 39 percent in salmon exports from 2022.
Norway is the second largest seafood exporter in the world and is known for prime quality seafood from the Atlantic Ocean.
Norway implements strict rules and regulations in handling seafood, making sure that the produce is from a clean, healthy environment and in compliance to the sustainable standards of fish farming.
“Our seafood industry has one of the most advanced technologies, and we make sure that most of our seafood is based on sustainable practices. This is why Norwegian seafood is the best in the world,” said the top diplomat from Norway.
There has been rebound of salmon exports to the Philippines after the government lifted restrictions after the pandemic.
The market is seeing a gradual increase in demand for fresh salmonoids in the Philippines versus processed seafood.
Norway is also looking at further utilizing the existing free trade agreement with the Philippines, which entered into force last 2018 and includes tariff free entry of goods from member states including such as Norway, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Iceland.
The Royal Norwegian Embassy in Manila joined one of the largest food shows in the country, the World Food Exposition last August 2 to 5 at the SMX Convention Center Manila. The Embassy presented the Norwegian Seafood Pavilion featuring fresh catch from the cold waters of Norway with the backdrop of the Norwegian fjords.
The Royal Norwegian Embassy in Manila also hosted a business matching reception at the Convention Center, inviting around fifty industry players to expand network and business opportunities for seafood.
The Norwegian Seafood Pavilion is in cooperation with Royal Norwegian Seafood, one of the leading seafood exporters in the Philippines with 23 years of experience in the industry. The Pavilion also featured an exciting demonstration of handling salmon meat from Chef Erling Rune.
An estimate of around 37 million meals is produced from the fisheries industry of Norway, every day.
