Seafood from Norway teams up with athletics champion Karsten Warholm

The Norwegian seafood industry and athletics world champion Karsten Warholm both strive to be the best in the world at what they do. Now the two are joining forces in a two-year agreement to promote seafood from Norway across the world.

“Through promoting the Seafood from Norway origin mark, the Norwegian Seafood Council's vision is to "together we will win the world for Norwegian seafood". Through this collaboration, we gain a new team member who actually has won the world. I am incredibly proud that Karsten Warholm is going to work with us to achieve our vision. We are very well matched, and I am confident that we will work well together and support each other's work”, says CEO Renate Larsen of the Norwegian Seafood Council.

Close relationship with seafood

Over the course of the collaboration, Warholm will work together with the Norwegian Seafood Council to promote the many benefits of eating more sustainable seafood and the value of the Norwegian origin. For Warholm working with seafood from Norway makes sense, both from a personal and professional point of view.

“We’ve dreamed about working with Norwegian seafood for a long time. It’s a fantastic product, and of vital importance for Norway as a nation, and something our entire team is very invested in. I’m looking forward to working with the Norwegian Seafood Council and developing a common platform”, says Karsten Warholm.

Two global giants

Norway is the world's second largest seafood exporter. Karsten Warholm is Olympic champion, world champion and world-record holder in the 400-meter hurdles. Both parties are thus global giants in their respective arenas.

“Our country is built on the values that come from our seafood industry. My ancestors worked at sea themselves with all kinds of fishing and harvesting, and I have always had a great love for Norwegian seafood. Seafood is of course also an important part of my diet and absolutely necessary to deliver the results that I do. It is also a well-known fact that all the best things in the world come from the Norwegian coastline”, says Karsten Warholm with a twinkle in his eye.

Warholm, who grew up in the coastal town of Ulsteinvik on the west coast of Norway, has become a well-known face in the world of sport. This summer he broke the world record in 400 metres hurdles twice, with the race in the Tokyo summer Olympics hailed by some as one of the greatest in Olympic history.

Overcoming hurdles to seafood consumption

The agreement with the Norwegian Seafood Council will run throughout 2022 and 2023. During this period, the parties will work together to strengthen the position of Norwegian seafood across the world.

“We have a common goal of increasing knowledge and awareness of seafood from Norway. Increasing seafood consumption is not only important for the country's income and jobs, but also for delivering on the UN's sustainability goals”, says Renate Larsen.

“Like the Norwegian Seafood Council, we also try to be the best in what we do. In addition, Team Warholm are very aware of our social responsibility, and we want the next generation to enjoy seafood from Norway, because it is healthy and delicious”, says Karsten Warholm.

Norway as a seafood nation

• Norway is the world's second largest seafood exporter, beaten only by China.
• Norway exports seafood annually to around 150 countries.
• Every single day all year round, 37 million meals of Norwegian seafood are eaten worldwide.
• Measured in value, these are the 10 largest individual countries to which Norway exported seafood in 2020: Poland, Denmark, France, the USA, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Spain, Japan, Italy and China.

Facts about the Norwegian Seafood Council

• The Norwegian Seafood Council is a marketing organization that works with the Norwegian seafood industry to increase the value of Norwegian seafood in established and new markets worldwide. It is the largest generic marketing organisation for seafood in the world.
• The Norwegian Seafood Council is a public limited company owned by the Ministry of Trade and Industry and financed through a statutory tax on all exports of Norwegian seafood.
• The company is headquartered in Tromsø and has 13 offices around the world.