The system of Norwegian fish sales unions – An anachronism or a successful adaptation to modern fisheries?

ABSTRACT

The Norwegian system of mandatory sales unions with monopoly powers to fix minimum ex-vessel prices, protected by law, has for years attracted much interest, ranging from contempt to admiration. How is it that a system invented during the economic crisis in the late 1930s has survived and thrived, even in an era of increasing globalization and free market reforms? The paper gives a brief history of the system and examines how it has changed, developed and been contested since its establishment in 1938. Special emphasis is placed on the Norwegian Raw Fish Association (NRA), which is the largest of the Norwegian fish sales unions. With a conservative-liberalist coalition government since 2013, the system has again been questioned, and the paper discusses whether the Fish Sales Unions Act and the sales unions will survive in the future.

Keywords:

• Fishery history
• fish sales unions
• fisheries management
• fisheries organization
• Corporativism

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. In June, 2013, the Raw Fish Act was replaced by a new law, named the Fish Sales Union's Act.

2. White Paper ((Meld. St. 22 (2012–2013)) “The World's Foremost Seafood Nation”). The White Paper was originally presented for the Parliament by the red-green government coalition, but the new conservative government has committed itself to the same objectives, while the strategies to reach this goal may differ.

3. In the white fish sector as well as the pelagic sector there are many examples of fish companies that have majority ownership interests in fishing boats. However, these companies have been granted their rights as exemptions from the Participation Act.

4. NRA ran 47 receiving stations and ten small processing facilities in 2013.

5. According to previous Director of Fisheries, Mr. Peter Gullestad (pers. comm.).

6. In Finnmark County there is only one processing company that has not gone bankrupt over the years, namely Båtsfjordbruket - according to the previous owner (Kjell Olaf Larsen) largely because they never owned any fishing boats!

7. The previous government introduced a maximum ownership of aquaculture licenses of 25%, only to be overruled by ESA, claiming that this regulation was invalid according to EU law. The result was a new aggregation limit of 40%, but dependent on a number of conditions relating to further processing and research. At present only Marine Harvest is in a position to exceed the ceiling of 25% ownership.