‘Stronger than it has even been’: Market forces conspiring to keep Icelandic frozen cod prices sky high

Icelandic frozen cod prices are at record levels -- between 70 and 80 percent higher than the same time last year -- and are showing no signs of abating amid ongoing strong demand.

The waning of COVID-19, Russia’s war in Ukraine, cuts in cod quotas in Iceland and the Barents Sea, and Norway’s partial loss of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) eco-label are all fueling greater demand, leading to higher market prices.

“For us, the market is stronger than it has even been,” Eirikur Oli Dagbjartsson, fishing fleet manager at Icelandic group Thorfish, told IntraFish.