Norwegian cheese slicer factory bankrupt

The Lillehammer factory which has produced the famous Norwegian cheese slicer is bankrupt following a dramatic fall in sales.

Thor Bjørklund & Sønner AS, that opened its doors in 1927 was Norway’s only producer of the traditional Norwegian cheese slicer (ostehøvel), and the first in the world. Now fifteen workers will loose their job, reports Gudbrandsdalen Dagningen

The Norwegian carpenter Thor Bjørklund (1889 – 1975) patented the Norwegian invention in 1925. Since the beginning the company has produced over 50 million cheese slicers. During the pioneering years a total of 50-60 work operations were used on each cheese slicer, and one hour was used to produce each slicer. Today, approximately 7,000 slicers can be produced in one hour.

Through the years Bjørklund expanded their range of ostehøvel to include gift articles and other cutlery. They also moved some of their production abroad to low-cost countries, including China, but had an ultimate ambition of always making the ostehøvel at home, in Lillehammer.