The Lauritzen Foundation was established in 1945 by two brothers, Ivar and Knud Lauritzen, and their sister, Anna Lønberg-Holm, to mark the 50th anniversary of “Dampskibsselskabet Vesterhavet,” the shipping company founded by their father, Ditlev Lauritzen, in 1895.

From the start, the Foundation has had multiple objectives. We promote and develop Danish shipping and Danish enterprise. We support projects in shipping, agriculture, the arts, trade and industry. We fund Nordic and international humanitarian work. In particular, the Foundation is intended to support education and training of the young in Denmark and abroad and to work for "the best possible arrangement of workplaces to promote job satisfaction."