page_title: Vestfold
section_title: Economy
hierarchical_section_title: Vestfold / Economy
caption_attribution_description: English: Jotun Paint factory (Jotun fabrikker) in Sandefjord, Norway
context_page_description: Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered the previous Buskerud and Telemark counties. The county administration was located in Tønsberg, Norway's oldest city, and the largest city is Sandefjord. With the exception of the city-county of Oslo, Vestfold was the smallest county in Norway by area.
  Vestfold was located west of the Oslofjord, as the name indicates. It included many smaller, but well-known towns in Norway, such as Larvik, Sandefjord, Tønsberg and Horten; these towns run from Oslo in an almost constant belt of urban areas along the coast, ending in Grenland in neighbouring region Telemark. The river Numedalslågen runs through the county. Many islands are located at the coast. Vestfold is mostly dominated by lowland and is among the best agricultural areas of Norway. Winters last about three months, while pleasant summer temperatures last from May to September, with a July average high of 17 °C.
  Vestfold was traditionally known for shipping and sailing.
context_section_description: Traditional industries in Vestfold have included whaling and ship building. For over 50 years in the 19th century, Sandefjord and partially Tønsberg functioned as the world centre for the whaling industry. However, whaling ended in the 1960s and the ship building industry has gradually reduced since the 1980s. Information technology is currently a growing industry, and the county is home to large web shops such as Komplett, MPX.no and netshop.no. 18.9 percent of the county's total area is used for agriculture, the highest percentage of any county in Norway. 70% of agricultural lands are used for the cultivation of grains. Vestfold's farming area makes up five percent of Norway's cultivated areas. However, by area, Vestfold only makes up 0.7 percent of Norway's land area.
  Vestfold has Norway's most expensive vacation homes. Sandefjord had Norway's most expensive vacation homes in 2012, while Tjøme had the most expensive homes as of 2010. General property values appreciated 28.3 percent between 2010–2015.
caption: Jotun is one of the world's largest manufacturers of paints and coating products.[68][69][70]
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