The Freberg brothers win regional agriculture award

Brødrene Freberg grows green asparagus on a large scale and is also Norway's only producer of white asparagus. The company is Norway's largest supplier of Brussels sprouts and also grows parsnips, celeriac and celery. Our Regional Director in Vestfold, Anniken Fægri Damm-Larsen, is impressed by what Brødrene Freberg has achieved:

'Brødrene Freberg stand out as innovative vegetable growers in a large and important part of Vestfold's agricultural sector. They continue to add new products to their branded range and invest in products that stand out in the freezer cabinets and on shop shelves,' she says.

The award winner is delighted with the recognition and looks forward to what lies ahead:

– With support from our Bionova funding, we have been able to take precision farming to a new level on our farm in 2025. We have reduced our use of diesel, artificial fertilisers and pesticides, as well as the number of hours worked, while still achieving good yields. For us as farmers, that is absolutely amazing!

He makes it clear that our support has played an important role in helping the company take new technological steps:

‘Our support has been crucial in enabling us to implement new technology that benefits Norwegian agriculture while protecting the climate and the environment. Winning the BU Award as well makes us feel humbled and proud in a county with so many skilled farmers,’ says Ane Hjetland Holt of Brødrene Freberg.

Our Regional Director, Anniken Fægri Damm-Larsen, also believes the award winner deserves special recognition for her efforts to increase her social media followers' knowledge of food production:

‘The company is building knowledge of Norwegian food production among more than 11,000 followers on social media. They speak openly about challenges both large and small, and how they solve them through extensive agronomic experience and insight, communicated simply and effectively. The Freberg brothers are excellent ambassadors for Norwegian agriculture, excelling in innovation as well as economic, environmental and social sustainability.’

The award winners use traditional farming methods, but have introduced robots to reduce their use of pesticides. This year, they are also carrying out two R&D projects with NLR, which are partly funded by Bionova. They have invested in a drone that takes images and detects weeds. The drone sends the data to the sprayer, which uses it for precision spraying. The Freberg brothers will be the first in Norway to test this technology.

Business Development Award for Agriculture
Each year, we present the Business Development Award for Agriculture on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food. The award recognises those who have built a successful business or industry based on rural and agricultural resources. Each county selects a winner, who receives NOK 50,000. The county winners then compete for the national award of NOK 250,000.