The Salmon gives city a taste of fish farming life
A visitor centre that aims to bring a salmon farm to the city has been officially opened in Oslo by Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg.
The Salmon is owned by salmon farmer Nova Sea, which has more than 20 farm sites, and a property company, and one of its purposes is to highlight what the aquaculture industry is doing, as well as showcasing the jobs that exist in the industry.
The centre has had 5,000 visitors since its unofficial opening in October last year. It was conceived by Petter Sandberg, owner of Oslo sushi restaurant Alex Sushi, and Nova Sea chief executive Odd Strøm, who were both at yesterday’s ceremony.
Need for information
The centre’s managers want people to learn more about salmon farming, and point out that while it is nice to visit one of the number of fish farms open to the public along Norway’s coast, it is not always convenient to get there. They have therefore moved the experience to Oslo, on the other side of the country, so that tourists, school classes and everyone else can learn about salmon and farming.
Solerg is also hoping that the Oslo population and tourists will take the time to visit the centre. “There is a great need for information,” Solberg said to the attendees. “Those of us who come from the coast, we have grown up with this industry. We know what it does. I have to say that not everyone in this city does.”
From tomorrow (March 1), the centre is open to school classes and will provide the population of eastern Norway and tourists with knowledge of the aquaculture industry and the opportunities that exist there.
Control room
Those attending the official opening were given the opportunity to experience its many exhibitions and gain a better insight into how the aquaculture industry operates. Among other things, the visitors saw live images from the cage edge from a control room, where Solberg, among other things, managed to control the levers.
The viewing centre has hired Solveig van Nes from the company Marine Prospects, to assist with academic content and communication and to create a teaching program for secondary schools about the aquaculture industry.
Take a look inside the centre in the large picture gallery below.
