The finalists for the 2025 National Rural Development Award have been announced

This year, we have once again presented regional business awards in every county. The winners range from food producers, abattoirs and dairies to transport companies. What they all have in common is that they build on the resources of agriculture and rural communities.

The regional winners will compete for the national award, which we will present at the Internationale Grüne Woche food and agriculture fair in Berlin in January 2026. We have now selected three finalists for the national award. This year's finalists are:

Brødrene Freberg grows green asparagus on a large scale and is also the only producer of white asparagus in Norway. The company is Norway's largest supplier of Brussels sprouts and also grows a range of other horticultural crops. It has also developed the Frebergs brand of chopped frozen vegetables. The company uses new technologies in its cultivation, including drones, to improve production and make it more precise. This has reduced its use of diesel, artificial fertilisers, pesticides and labour while maintaining high-quality yields. Read more about the award winner from Vestfold here: Brødrene Freberg wins regional agriculture award | Innovation Norway

Valdresmeieriet has grown significantly over the past fifteen years, evolving from a small farm dairy into a modern dairy that benefits many farmers. Its recipe for success has been handcrafted cheese made from summer mountain farm milk from Valdres, earning the dairy numerous awards for its cheeses. It has won several awards at the Norwegian Cheese Championships, as well as gold at the World Cheese Awards in 2023 and 2024 for its Bufar cheese. Read more about the award winner from Innlandet here: Valdresmeieriet wins agricultural award | Innovation Norway

Galåvolden Gård is now run by the ninth and tenth generations of the Galåen family. For more than 20 years, they have been producing distinctive local food. The farm's products are available throughout Norway and are also used in restaurants and other professional kitchens. When developing new products, they use their own ingredients as well as ingredients and by-products from other local food producers. More than ten of their products have earned the ‘Speciality’ label, and they make everything from cheese and cakes to ice cream and other desserts. Read more about this award winner from Trøndelag here:

Galåvolden Gård wins agricultural award | Innovation Norway