Mowi Raises Salmon Harvest Outlook to 620,000 Tonnes as Processing Sets Record
Mowi raised its 2026 salmon-harvest estimate to 620,000 tonnes after producing a record 186,000 tonnes in the third quarter, while its downstream processing business handled a record 84,000 tonnes. The results show growth running through farming, processing and feed rather than stopping at the farm gate.
The harvest outlook rises by 20,000 tonnes
The new 620,000-tonne estimate is 20,000 tonnes above Mowi’s previous 600,000-tonne expectation, a 3.3% increase. Management said the revised total would be 11% above 2025, compared with expected industry growth of 4%.
That seven-percentage-point growth gap is strategically important. Faster supply growth can strengthen Mowi’s position with retailers and foodservice customers, but it also increases exposure to salmon prices if industry production expands faster than demand.
Quarterly harvest volume increased 12% to 186,000 tonnes. Revenue reached a record €1.73 billion and operational earnings before interest and tax reached €275 million, the company’s best third-quarter result.
Processing grew faster than the harvest
Mowi Consumer Products, which turns salmon into value-added retail and foodservice products, processed 84,000 tonnes, up 18% from the prior year. That growth rate exceeded the 12% increase in farming harvest volume.
The processing volume equals about 45.2% of the quarter’s harvested tonnage. This is only a scale comparison, not a physical flow calculation: product weight, timing, purchases from third parties and transfers between countries mean the two figures should not be treated as the same fish moving through one pipeline.
Even with that limitation, the two records show why vertical integration matters. A larger processing network can channel fish into retailer programs, portion formats and foodservice specifications rather than relying solely on commodity sales. It also creates more operational complexity in labor, packaging, refrigeration and distribution.
Lower farming costs supported the volume push
Mowi said farming costs were €51 million lower than a year earlier in the quarter and €122 million lower over the first nine months. The company did not present those savings as a simple per-kilogram reduction in the release, so dividing them by harvest volume would risk overstating unit efficiency.
Feed operations also expanded. Mowi Feed reported a 19% increase in volume sold and a 33% increase in results. Management linked that growth to favorable biological conditions in Norwegian and Scottish farming operations.
Feed, farming and processing do not carry the same risk. Feed performance depends on raw-material costs and internal demand; farming depends on biology, sea lice, mortality and market prices; processing depends on utilization, labor, product mix and retailer contracts. Strong growth across all three reduces reliance on one stage, but it does not eliminate those exposures.
What the records mean for seafood buyers
For grocery and foodservice buyers, higher harvest and processing capacity can improve program reliability and product availability. Mowi operates farming activities in seven countries and processing facilities across multiple consumer markets, giving it flexibility to match fish, format and destination.
The volume increase may also influence pricing. Mowi expects its own production to grow much faster than the wider industry in 2026. If demand absorbs the additional fish, the processing network can support revenue and margin growth. If salmon prices weaken, higher volumes may partly cushion earnings but can also place more pressure on commodity realizations.
The company’s release described underlying demand as strong, but it did not disclose customer-level orders, price realization by market or a full bridge showing how much of the profit increase came from volume, price, biology and costs. Those details are necessary before treating one record quarter as a permanent margin shift.
What to watch next
The key indicators are the final 2026 harvest, fourth-quarter salmon prices, biological performance in Norway and Scotland, Consumer Products utilization and the relationship between processing volume and segment profit. Feed costs and cold-chain expenses will also determine how much of the volume growth reaches the bottom line.
Sources and methodology
Agrilinkage used Mowi’s 4 November 2026 results announcement and the company’s investor reports page. Percentage changes and the processing-to-harvest scale comparison are Agrilinkage calculations from company figures and are rounded.
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