Salmon farming industry veterans ex-Mowi CEO Alf-Helge Aarskog and ex-Cargill Aqua Nutrition President Einar Wathne have agreed to be mentors at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU).
"They know the industry inside and out, both in Norway and abroad, and will have important roles when it comes to the intersection of aquaculture and sustainable business development," said Turid Morkore, who heads the aquaculture program council at NMBU .
Both Aarskog and Wathne were educated at NMBU. Aarskog has a master's degree in aquaculture and continuing education from Harvard Business School, and has been CEO of both the Leroy Seafood Group and Mowi, formerly Marine Harvest.
In addition to a master's degree in aquaculture, Wathne also has a doctorate in fish feed. He has worked in the feed industry for over 30 years, and has been CEO of Ewos and president of Cargill Aqua Nutrition.
The pair will contribute their knowledge in the field of applied aquaculture, which basically acts as an intersection between biological aquaculture production and business development, and addresses topics within Norwegian and international aquaculture such as the environment, fish welfare, sustainability, economics and management, business models, negotiations and decision-making processes.
Aarskog and Wathne will act as supervisors and mentors in "Real World Cases," which are case studies based on real representations.
"The teaching of applied aquaculture, which is offered to master's-level students, is designed to help students connect theory and practice, making them more attractive in the labor market after graduation, said Morkore.
"It is meaningful to be able to share knowledge and experience from a long life in the industry with young, knowledge-hungry students," said Wathne.
"For my part, there is not much that is more meaningful than facilitating and helping to create the world's best education in aquaculture," added Aarskog.
