Nordlaks

What Nordlaks does

Nordlaks is a family-owned Norwegian aquaculture company, founded in 1989 by Inge Berg and headquartered in Stokmarknes, Vesterålen, operating the entire Atlantic salmon value chain north of the Arctic Circle. The company controls every stage from its own breeding program and three smolt facilities (Innhavet, Mørsvik, and Nusfjord), through 39 sea-farming localities in northern Nordland and Troms, to slaughtering (~75,000-tonne annual capacity at Nordlaks Produkter AS), fillet processing, and global sales via Nordlaks Sales AS (with a Shanghai office serving China). Its core products are fresh whole salmon, frozen whole salmon, and fresh fillets (VAP) sold under a "Superior" quality grade to international food retailers and seafood distributors in over 40 countries.

Nordlaks differentiates itself through two flagship technology bets: Havfarmen "Jostein Albert," a 385m × 60m dynamic floating steel structure with 10,000-tonne capacity — currently the most exposed salmon farm in Norway — and Storbåtsegga, a 3,120-tonne semi-closed production tank with sealed walls extending 20 meters below the sea surface, stocked with its first fish in April 2026. A biotechnology division (established 2009) processes approximately 99% of slaughter and fillet waste into fish oil, hydrolysate, and ensilage (K3), most of which is piped directly to Skretting for feed production. Nordlaks holds over 5 billion NOK of innovation and value-chain investment and was the first Norwegian salmon producer to receive third-party antibiotic-free certification.

Commercially, Nordlaks generates revenue primarily through one-time sale of salmon products (fresh, frozen, VAP), supplemented by transaction-fee revenue from third-party slaughtering services and from biotech by-product sales. The company employs over 800 people and reported FY2025 consolidated revenue of 5.23 billion NOK and net profit of 510M NOK, both down year-over-year due to lower salmon prices despite higher slaughter volumes. It is ranked the world's 11th largest and Norway's 6th largest salmon farming company.

Name

Nordlaks

Legal name

Nordlaks AS

Website

https://nordlaks.no

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Nordlaks is a family-owned, vertically integrated Norwegian Atlantic salmon producer operating the full value chain north of the Arctic Circle — from breeding and smolt production to sea farming, slaughtering, processing, and global sales — serving food retailers and distributors in over 40 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Stokmarknes

HQ country

Norway

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Salmon Product Sales: Nordlaks generates revenue through the sale of salmon products including fresh whole salmon, frozen whole salmon, and fillet products (VAP). They operate a complete value chain from smolt production through farming, slaughtering, processing, and global sales to over 40 countries.
2. Slaughtering Services: Nordlaks Produkter AS provides slaughtering services for other aquaculture companies in the region in addition to processing their own fish. The facility has annual capacity of approximately 75,000 tonnes.
3. Biotechnology Products: The biotechnology department produces fish oil, hydrolysate, and ensilage from rest raw materials, sold primarily to Skretting for feed production. Most hydrolysate and large portions of oil are transported through closed pipe systems.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Nordlaks is a vertically integrated Atlantic salmon producer operating the complete value chain from breeding, smolt production, sea-based farming, slaughtering, fillet processing, and global sales. The company produces fresh whole salmon, fresh and frozen fillets, and value-added products (VAP), distributing to over 40 countries. It also operates a biotechnology division that converts slaughter by-products into fish oil, hydrolysate, and ensilage for feed production.

Product overview

Nordlaks is a vertically integrated salmon farming company controlling the entire value chain from breeding and smolt production through to sales and distribution. The company operates north of the Arctic Circle with headquarters in Stokmarknes, Vesterålen. Core products include Fresh Whole Salmon and Fresh Fillet, complemented by innovative offshore and semi-closed farming technologies: the Havfarmen 'Jostein Albert' (385m offshore farm with 10,000 ton capacity) and Storbåtsegga (semi-closed tank with 3,120 ton capacity). A biotech division processes approximately 99% of raw materials into Fish Oil, Hydrolysat, and Ensilage (K3) for feed production, supporting circular economy goals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Havfarmen «Jostein Albert»: A dynamic floating steel ocean farm, 385 meters long and 60 meters wide, with capacity for 10,000 tonnes of salmon. The most exposed aquaculture locality currently in operation in Norway.
• Havtanken «Storbåtsegga»

Products and services

• Fresh Whole Salmon Fresh whole Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) of Superior quality, available in size grades from 1-2 kg up to 9+ kg. Packed in 20 kg expanded polystyrene boxes with ice and maintained at approximately 2°C throughout transport via truck, train, or air freight. Sold to international seafood distributors and retail chains.
• Fresh Fillet Fresh salmon fillet from Norwegian Atlantic salmon, produced, processed, and finished in Northern Norway. Part of Nordlaks's Value Added Products (VAP) category, with the filet factory handling approximately 7,000 tonnes raw material per year.
• Fish Oil Oil extracted from slaughter and filleting waste, used as a feed ingredient and sometimes further processed into omega-3 products for human consumption. Most output is sold to Skretting for feed production and transported via closed pipe systems.
• Hydrolysate Water-soluble protein product consisting of amino acids, peptides and polypeptides produced through thermal processing. Used in feed for the same species and can also be used for human consumption.
• Ensilage (K3) Acidified fish waste mass preserved with formic acid, used as raw material in animal feed production.
• Slaughtering Services Slaughtering services provided by Nordlaks Produkter AS to other aquaculture companies in the region. The facility has an annual capacity of approximately 75,000 tonnes, supporting regional fish farmers that lack their own processing infrastructure.

Quantifiable outcome

• 424 million meals per year from 75,000 tonnes slaughter volume
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• NordkraftcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 November 2025Nordlaks and Nordkraft entered into a collaboration announced in November 2025, focused on energy cooperation and sustainable power solutions for aquaculture operations.
• Aquaship/Intership RK ASmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2021Nordlaks sold the wellboat MS Bjørg Pauline to Aquaship/Intership. NL Brønnbåt AS brokers wellboat services with the Bjørg Pauline, which is chartered from Intership RK AS. The vessel is a gas/electric hybrid with land power connection and LNG propulsion.
• GemakmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2018Turkish shipyard group Gemak was selected as the builder of the Storbåtsegga production tank. Contract signed January 31, 2022 for construction and installation of marine systems. The unit was built in Turkey and transported to Norway.
• SkrettingcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2009Long-term partnership where Nordlaks supplies fish oil and hydrolysate from their biotechnology division to Skretting for feed production. Most products are transported through closed pipe systems directly to Skretting facilities, supporting circular economy and reducing transport emissions.
• NSK Ship DesigncoreTechnology or IntegrationNSK Ship Design in Harstad led the design process and verification of the Storbåtsegga project, as well as the tender process toward shipyards. Responsible for design and system integration.
• GEMAK ShipyardmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerStorbåtsegga was constructed at GEMAK shipyard in Turkey and transported to Norway on the GPO Emerald vessel, arriving in Vesterålen in November 2025.
• XXLofotenminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with XXLofoten experience company for boat tours to modern aquaculture facilities, providing visitors unique insights into Norwegian salmon farming.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Scottish Sea Farms: Joint-venture salmon farmer between SalMar and Lerøy operating in Scotland — comparable as a vertically integrated salmon producer serving European retail and foodservice, but in a different geographic market.

Direct peers

• Bakkafrost: Faroese vertically integrated salmon farmer with premium positioning and own feed manufacturing — comparable to Nordlaks on integration depth, scale (mid-tier global), and premium-product strategy.
• Grieg Seafood ASA: Norwegian salmon farmer with operations in Norway, British Columbia, and Newfoundland — comparable scale and product mix to Nordlaks, with similar focus on sustainable certification and value-added processing.
• Lerøy Seafood Group: Norwegian vertically integrated salmon farmer, processor, and distributor — closely matches Nordlaks's full value chain and direct-to-customer distribution model across European and global markets.
• Mowi ASA: World's largest Atlantic salmon farmer and the most direct comparable: fully vertically integrated from breeding through processing and global sales, headquartered in Norway, with similar fresh/frozen/VAP product mix and comparable geographic footprint.
• Nova Sea AS: Privately held Norwegian salmon farmer in northern Norway — closest size and ownership-structure comparable to Nordlaks, with overlapping operating geography in the Vesterålen/Helgeland region.
• SalMar ASA: Major Norwegian salmon farmer with pioneering offshore farming technology (Ocean Farm 1) — the most direct technological analog to Nordlaks's Havfarmen — and a similarly vertically integrated value chain.
• Cermaq: Mitsubishi-owned salmon farmer operating in Norway, Chile, and Canada — comparable to Nordlaks as a mid-to-large scale, fully integrated Atlantic salmon producer with global market exposure.

Broad incumbents

• Cooke Aquaculture: Privately held Canadian-headquartered seafood group with salmon farming operations in Atlantic Canada, Chile, Scotland, and the US — comparable vertically integrated business model with global salmon exposure and broader species/segment portfolio.

Others

• Skretting: Global aquaculture feed manufacturer and Nordlaks's strategic partner (biotech by-product off-take) — comparable as an adjacent ecosystem participant in the salmon value chain rather than a direct competitor, included because the Skretting relationship is a structural feature of Nordlaks's circular-economics model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@nordlaks
• Facebookfacebook.com/nordlaks
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nordlaks
• Instagraminstagram.com/nordlaks

Compliance8 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments3 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nordlaks