Norway Doubles Down on Chinese Market with New Exports, says Norwegian Ambassador to China

By Harry Wu, SFC, 21st Century Business Herald

With demand for high-quality, fresh seafood continuing to rise, “there's great potential in China,” said Vebjørn Dysvik, Norwegian Ambassador to China at the 8th China International Import Expo (CIIE).

Recently, there have been two significant breakthroughs between China and Norway. “One is that it's going to be possible to export brown crab from Norway to China. We know that the Chinese people love crabs and we have lots of crabs. So that's a good match. And also, next year we're going to have the export of Norwegian brown cheese to China, which is already very popular in other countries in Asia. And that, we think, is going to be a big hit in the Chinese market as well,” said the ambassador.

China and Norway have maintained close cooperation in the seafood sector for a long time. Over the past two decades, Norwegian seafood has worked hand in hand with its Chinese industry partners to jointly promote the vigorous development of Norwegian seafood in the Chinese market.

The first three quarters of 2025 have witnessed growth in Norway's seafood exports to China, reaching 9.37 billion NOK ($918 million), a year-on-year increase of 42%. China has emerged as Norway's third-largest export market among more than 150 countries and regions, showing the highest export value growth globally.

“We don't think every Chinese is going to eat as much as salmon as Norwegian is, but even a small increase in China will mean a large change in the consumption volume. Part of this will be exports from Norway,” Dysvik said. Looking ahead, he believes the Chinese market still holds enormous potential.

Beyond seafood, China and Norway are also promoting cooperation in other areas. “More than one third of Norwegian companies in China are within the maritime sector. This is an area where we have expertise and experience to share, and where we see hand in hand cooperation with Chinese partners for developing new, green solutions for the future. Just a few weeks ago I attended the China Wind Power 2025 in Beijing, where we showcased a number of Norwegian companies in this sector,” he added.

Amid the shadow of protectionism, the importance of cooperation has become increasingly prominent. “Norway is a country with a small population and an open economy. We rely on an open and functional multilateral trade system,” Dysvik emphasized.