April 11, 08.32 a.m. CLT
Gov't urges companies to take responsibility in maintaining jobs at their sites
Chilean authorities held an extraordinary meeting with the Fisheries Commission of the Chamber of Deputies in Puerto Montt to discuss the current crisis hitting the salmon industry in the country.
The deadly algal bloom present in Chile’s region X is now known to have caused losses of 12 percent in Chile’s annual salmon production.
Luis Felipe Cespedes, minister of economy, development and tourism said authorities including parliamentarians and industry leaders evaluated the impact of the emergency from the beginning.
So far, major salmon producers such as Cermaq, Camanchaca, Marine Harvest and AquaChile have reduced their workforce in Chile on the back of lower production.
“I have been very clear, there is a responsibility on the companies’ side to generate the conditions to maintain the jobs of their employees and mitígate the effects of the bloom. They cannot just ask the government to respond every time there is a particular problem, that is not a fair procedure,” Cespedes said.
In addition, he called for more research and development in the industry to be able to respond to future challenges.
--IntraFish Media
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April 11, 07.32 a.m. CLT
'Up to 500' employees to go at Marine Harvest Chile
Marine Harvest has decided to reduce its manning in Marine Harvest Chile by up to 500 employees due to the recent algal bloom and poor results over the last year, according to a release to the Oslo Bors Monday morning.
Marine Harvest will revert with a complete restructuring plan of Marine Harvest Chile in connection with the first quarter results release on 11 May.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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April 4, 05.32 a.m. CLT
Australis loses $11.2 million due to algae bloom
Chilean salmon producer Australis Seafoods lost $11.2 million (€9.8 million) due to the algae bloom affecting three of the company’s sites, Australis said in an official note.
Its Puluqui and Huito sites, both belonging to subsidiary Australis Mar, the company estimates losses of about $7 million (€6.2 million) and $1.1 million (€966,680), respectively.
In addition, a third center, Moraleda, saw its biomass reduced by 20 percent, accounting for losses of approximately $3.1 million (€2.7 million) due to "oceanographic changes that caused the displacement of some cages," according to the company.
-- IntraFish Media
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March 31, 04.24 a.m. CLT
Chilean salmon insurance payouts highest in aquaculture history
Dagfinn Ulriksen, head of aquaculture for insurance brokerage giant Aon in Norway, is expecting the salmon mortalities in Chile to ultimately result in insurance payouts of between $45 million (€39.8 million) and $50 million (€44.2 million), making it "by far" the largest payout for a disaster in the history of aquaculture.
Click here to read the full story.
--Anders Furuset
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March 30, 07.58 a.m. CLT
4,659 metric tons of dead salmon dumped into the sea
Jose Miguel Burgos, director of the Chile's National Service of Fisheries and Aquaculture (Sernapesca) said mortalities caused by algal bloom have ceased.
According to Burgos, 57 percent of the mortalities was processed as fishmeal and 30.3 percent was discarded at land dumps.
Additionally, Sernapesca said there were 11 discharges of mortalities at sea.
"In total, vessels have dumped around 4,659 metric tons of salmon out to see, in the area designated for this purpose, in a maneuver completely monitored by Sernapesca," Burgos said.
--IntraFish Media
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March 30, 5.15 a.m. CLT
Could Chile have avoided the algae bloom disaster?
With the numbers stacking up higher in Chilean salmon losses, salmon farmers in British Columbia feel the pain.
In the late 1980s and 1990s, salmon farms in BC and Washington state lost more than $35 million (€31.2 million) in fish due to algae blooms -- specifically Heterosigma akashiwo and Chaetoceros blooms, according to a North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES) scientific report.
Click here to read the full story.
--Kim Tran
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March 30, 5.07 a.m. CLT
AquaChile denies claims of wrong-doing during algae bloom crisis
Chilean salmon producer AquaChile said it was never notified by Chile’s National Service of Fisheries and Aquaculture (Sernapesca) for breaching environmental regulations while handling mortalities during the algae bloom crisis, as some Chilean media reported.
Earlier this month, Sernapesca reportedly sent a note to AquaChile and three other salmon farmers in the region claiming they had not followed the procedures to extract mortalities from their sites.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 29, 12.37 p.m. CLT
Total mortalities caused by algal bloom sum up to 106,000 tons
Chile’s salmon producers’ representative body SalmonChile informed Tuesday mortalities caused by the algal bloom totaled 27 million fish, or the equivalent to 106,000 metric tons of fish at harvesting weight, which have been fully removed from the sites.
Of this, 95,000 metric tons correspond to Atlantic salmon, representing a 17 percent of the initial harvesting projections.
SalmonChile also informed there will not be a halt in Chilean Atlantic salmon supply at any time, but it will be largely reduced in 2016, especially during the second half of the year.
--IntraFish Media
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March 29, 7 a.m. CLT
Vessels allegedly selling fish killed by algae for human consumption
SalmonChile is disassociating Chile's salmon producers from artisanal vessel allegedly selling mortalities for human consumption.
It said producers sent all their mortalities resulting from the algal bloom either to be processed as fishmeal or to be dumped under current regulations.
“The mortalities were never destined by the companies to be sold for human consumption,” the organization said in an official note.
“The arrest conducted by the Navy of an artisanal vessel carrying product allegedly to be sold for human consumption does not correspond to the orders imposed by the companies,” the letter said.
“The origin and the way this vessel got the product must now be investigated, and if this is found to be true, the person responsible for it must be identified and face the law,” SalmonChile said.
--IntraFish Media
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March 29, 6.56 a.m. CLT
Multiexport algae bloom losses hit $9.4 million
Chilean salmon producer Multiexport is reporting final losses of 5,203 metric tons of salmon, weighing between 0.9 kilograms and 4.3 kilograms each, on the back of the algae bloom ravaging Chile's salmon industry.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 24, 4.51 p.m. CLT
SalmonChile fires back against criticism over algal crisis
SalmonChile on Thursday blasted media reports that salmon mortalities resulting from the algal bloom hitting Chile Region X may have been sold for direct human consumption.
Allegations against AquaChile in particular came under fire from the association, that noted Chile's largest salmon farmer deployed "all necessary resources ... to handle the emergency," removing thousands of tons of fish in 12 farms across five neighborhoods.
"We must not forget the emergency nature of the situation that is unprecedented in more than 30 years of history," SalmonChile said.
Click here to read the full story
--IntraFish Media
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March 24, 10.10 a.m. CLT
Chilean authorities investigate claims of algal bloom salmon mortalities sold for human consumption
Salmon mortalities resulting from the algal bloom hitting Chile Region X may have been sold for direct human consumption, reports enteratehoy.
Marcelo Maldonado, a prosecutor at the Public Ministry of Puerto Montt, confirmed the Chilean Navy reportedly found a small vessel carrying salmon that had been allegedly taken from one of the centers affected by the bloom, to be sold for human consumption.
Maldonado said the vessel’s owner admitted an executive with a Chilean company authorized him to proceed with the operation.
--IntraFish Media
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March 24, 06.09 a.m. CLT
AquaChile loses $43 million due to algae bloom
Chilean salmon farmer Aquachile total losses to the algae bloom come to around $43.3 million (€38.8 million), the company confirmed Wednesday.
In a note sent to the Santiago Stock Exchange, Torben Petersen, general director of Aquachile, said 18 percent of the firm's total salmon biomass was killed by the algae, or 22 percent of the company’s biomass value.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 23, 2.10 p.m. CLT
Are algal blooms connected to El Nino?
Fears of algal bloom, or red tide, are at the forefront of the salmon industry’s collective mind, thanks to a massive crisis in Chile — and even in general, losses due to toxic algal blooms are reported to be in excess of $82 million (€73.5 million) to all associated marine industries, according to Bill McGraw, an aquaculture and environmental scientist and founder of New Aqua Tech Panama.
Algal blooms can skyrocket fish mortalities, McGraw said in a letter to IntraFish sister publication Fish Farming International, and “the exact mechanism of mortality may be a combination of oxygen depletion in water, production of deadly toxins and in some cases irritation to skin and gills, which produce excess mucus and interferes with normal respiration.”
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 23, 06.08 a.m. CLT
Chilean salmon prices soar across the board
Prices for Chilean salmon and trout witnessed “huge rises” in week 11 across all markets, according to the latest figures from SalmonEx.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 23, 05.10 a.m. CLT
CEOs: Chilean salmon industry's volatility scaring off investors
Chile's appeal to investors is being hampered by the industry's inability to stabilize, according to the CEOs of two leading companies.
"To make the industry attractive for investors it needs to be more predictable. It is not worth the risk at these volatility levels,” Gerardo Balbontin, CEO of Chilean farmer Blumar, told IntraFish.
Click here to read the full story.
--Lola Navarro
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March 22, 6.15 a.m. CLT
Analysts: Farmed salmon prices to spike after 'most significant supply drop in history'
Chile's algae crisis leads to sharp decline in supply estimates.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 21, 10.10 a.m. CLT
US salmon market braces for impact from Chile's shortfall
As the salmon industry carefully watches the Chilean algal bloom crisis unfold, many are bracing for a salmon shortage and high prices -- particularly in the US market.
"I think its going to be tough for the world salmon supply to fill the void the Chileans are leaving because there isn't a lot of excess capacity," Peter Gati, president of the US East Coast division of Norwegian salmon importer Storm Seafood, told IntraFish.
Click here to read the full story.
--Kim Tran
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March 21, 10.00 a.m. CLT
Camanchaca CEO on algae devastation: 'Nobody was ready for this'
The spread of this algal bloom has exceeded all expectations and companies were not ready to tackle an event of such magnitude, Ricardo Garcia, CEO of Chilean salmon farmer Camanchaca, said.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 18, 9.15 a.m. CLT
Algae still ravaging Chile: 400,000 lost in 72 hours; but rate of die-offs is slowing
Chilean salmon mortalities hit 24.2 million fish on March 17, the National Fishesies Service (Sernapesca) confirmed to IntraFish.
Though mortalities caused by the algal bloom started to stabilize, the toxic algae caused deaths of all farmed salmon in Chile’s Region X, reported Tele 13.
Only three days earlier, on March 14, mortalities amounted to 23.8 million salmon, which means 400,000 fish died in 72 hours, said Raul Sunico, Chile's undersecretary of fisheries and aquaculture.
Click here to read the full story.
--Vegard Solsletten
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March 18, 12.40 p.m. CLT
Invermar trading suspended after sudden share price rise
The Santiago Stock Exchange temporarily suspended Chilean salmon farmer Invermar from trading Friday after a sudden price rise of 23 percent.
On March 17, the Chilean government announced salmon prices went up 45 percent due to low availability resulting from the algal bloom hitting the country for the last few weeks.
"According to the stock regulatory norms, today, Friday March 18, at 12.24 p.m. CLT, the stock exchange of Santiago proceeded to suspend Invermar shares from trading after registering sales at a value of CLP 80 (€0.10/$0.12) per share, a rise of 23.27 percent compared with their prices at the close of trading on March 17, which were CLP 64.90 (€0.08/$0.10) per share,” the Chilean stock exchange said in a note.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 17, 9.57 a.m. CLT
Market analyst estimates 39% decline in Atlantic salmon harvests in 2016
A new report by market analysts Index Salmon is projecting total losses of salmon in Chile Region X of at least 94,628 metric tons of Atlantic salmon, based on estimated harvesting weight, and 28,522 metric tons of coho salmon.
The algal bloom is mainly affecting the second district of Region X, which concentrates 25.1 percent of Chile’s farmed salmon biomass.
This represents a decline in production of 39 percent in Atlantic salmon and 29 percent in coho, compared with harvest projections estimated before the algal bloom took place.
In addition, the report shows total salmon harvests in 2016 in region X and XI will amount to 624,496 metric tons, and to 654,857 at a national scale.
--IntraFish Media
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March 16, 2.10 p.m. CLT
Algae crisis prompts Chilean salmon companies to re-examine growth model
Chilean algal bloom is stirring up an old issue in the aquaculture business in the country, sector consolidation, and is making it obvious that the industry should look toward a new growth model, reported DF.
Fernando Araya, director at Rabobank in Chile, and head of the new office of mergers and acquisitions advisor firm Antarctica, said there industry should emulate the Norwegian industry model.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 16, 6.10 a.m. CLT
Cermaq CEO: Chilean algal bloom crisis not over yet
Jon Hindar, CEO at Mitsubishi-owned salmon farmer Cermaq, does not believe the algal bloom crisis will result in consolidation in the Chilean salmon sector -- but at the same time warned the crisis is not over yet.
"With a few exceptions, the vast majority of owners have sufficient financial strength to keep operating normally," he told TDN Finans.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 16, 5.25 a.m. CLT
It's deja vu all over again for Chile
Can the aquaculture x-factors ever be fully eliminated?
Click here to read the full story.
--Drew Cherry
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March 15, 6.25. a.m. CLT
Sernapesca urges companies to dispose mortalities within 5 days
Chile’s National Service of Fisheries and Aquaculture (Sernapesca) is giving Chilean companies five days starting Monday to dispose of any dead fish on their farms that have been there for more than 10 days.
Alicia Gallardo, Sernapesca’s subdirector of aquiculture, also urged companies to report their action plans to the authorities within 24 hours.
“Mortalities of over ten days will not be processed as fishmeal. They will need to be disposed at land dumps as long as this is approved by the health authorities and only once companies have applied the adequate treatment, or thrown into the sea, in a zone assigned by the authorities for this purpose,” Gallardo said.
--IntraFish Media
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March 15, 6.10. a.m. CLT
Algal bloom kills 1.1 million fish at Blumar site
Chile’s algal bloom killed 100 percent of Blumar’s salmon production in its Caicura center, located in the second district of Region X, the company confirmed.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 14, 08.20 a.m. CLT
Chilean salmon producers see share prices soar
The shares of listed Chilean salmon producers are seeing a price hike after reaching their lowest value since the start of the algal bloom affecting production in 34 farms on March 7.
Since then, shares have increased from 3 percent to 51 percent.
However, market analysts consider there is a risk of Chilean companies going bankrupt.
Click here to read the full story.
--Lola Navarro, Anders Furuset
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March 11, 12.02 p.m. CLT
SalmonEx: Chile's Atlantic salmon harvests will sink 15% this year from algal bloom
SalmonEx is predicting a total salmon harvest of 637,344 metric tons in 2016, 11 percent down from the 721,770 metric tons harvested in 2015.
According to the report, it is expected Chilean salmon farmers will harvest 513,525 metric tons of Atlantic salmon during the year, down from 608,955 metric tons in 2015, and 117,659 metric tons of coho salmon, down from 154,982 metric tons in 2015.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 11, 10.35 a.m. CLT
Court lifts AquaChile factory suspension in Puerto Montt
The Court of Appeals of Puerto Montt ordered a suspension of AquaChile's processing plant in Puerto Montt be lifted while the case against the company's labor practices is processed.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 10, 7.38 p.m. CLT
Vessels will dump 300 tons of salmon out to sea
Jose Miguel Burgos, general director of Chile’s National Service of Fisheries and Aquaculture (Sernapesca) announced vessels are authorized to dump 300 metric tons of dead salmon out to sea, in a safe zone assigned for this purpose by Sernapesca.
“The dumping will be conducted at 75 nautical miles offshore, northeast the Isle of Chiloe,” Burgos said. “This location combines the technical guarantees of depths and currents to ensure the dumping does not affect fishing, sailing and environmental activities in the area.”
--IntraFish Media
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March 10, 7.38 p.m. CLT
72% of mortalities removed
Over 27,700 metric tons of dead salmon, corresponting to 72 percent of the mortalities caused by the deadly algal bloom, have already been removed from the farms according to Chile’s National Service of Fisheries and Aquaculture.
“A total of 125 vessels participated in the extractive activities including offshore vessels, artisanal vessels and wellboats working on 24-hour shifts to avoid environmental and health consequences,” said Alicia Gallardo, sub director of Sernapesca’s aquaculture department.
--IntraFish Media
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March 10, 6.10 a.m. CLT
AquaChile forced to suspend operations at Puerto Montt plant
Officials from Puerto Montt's Work Inspection Authority suspended AquaChile's operations at its plant in Puerto Montt.
The authority accused AquaChile of exceeding the legal number of work hours for its staff.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 10, 6.08 a.m. CLT
Intesal: Algal bloom could not have been foreseen
Algal blooms are very complex natural phenomenon that require favorable environmental conditions for their development. It is due to the high temperatures caused by El Nino, that an exceptional bloom of algae is affecting Chile’s Region X, SalmonChile's Technological Salmon Institute (Intesal) said in a note.
"To claim the industry could have foreseen the current algal bloom -- both in terms of its magnitude and spread -- is wrong and reflects little knowledge about the nature of the phenomenon, statistically and biologically,” the note read.
Although companies have put contingency plans in place, it is not always possible to avoid mortalities due to the exponential development of the situation and the logistics needed for an effective reaction.
On this occasion, algae densities have exceeded 3,000 times the levels considered harmful for salmon.
"It is the first time in the 26 years we have been studying algal blooms where this kind of algae, Chattonella, presents itself at this magnitude," said Intesal.
--IntraFish Media
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March 10, 6.00 a.m. CLT
Cermaq: Economic impact of algae bloom crisis is 'imminent'
The algal bloom present in Chile’s Region X is significantly affecting five sites belonging to salmon farmer Cermaq Chile, the company said Wednesday.
The event is affecting a biomass of around 3.5 million salmon, both Atlantic and coho, which would amount to nearly 16,000 metric tons based on an average harvest weight of 4.5 kilograms.
Click here to read the full story.
--IntraFish Media
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March 10, 5.45 a.m. CLT
Reuters: Losses could stack up to $800 million
Industry and government sources told news agency Reuters losses from the deadly algal bloom could amount to $800 million (€711.1 million), after nearly 23 million fish already died.
Producers Marine Harvest, Australis Seafoods, Compania Pesquera Camanchaca, Blumar, Multiexport Foods, Cermaq Group AS and Empresas AquaChile have all seen some of their salmon farms affected, according to data provided by the Economy Ministry and company filings with Chile's SVS securities regulator.
"The loss is likely equivalent to somewhere between 15 and 20 percent of Chile's total production for the year ... the forecast for 2016 was around 750,000 to 760,000 [metric] tons but now that's reduced to around 650,000 [metric] tons," Jose Miguel Burgos, the head of Sernapesca, told Reuters.
The 100,000 metric tons in lost production, which includes Atlantic salmon, Coho and trout, is equivalent to some $800 million in exports, he added.
Click here to read the full story on Reuters.
--IntraFish Media
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March 9, 11:43 a.m. CLT
Execs: Actual losses likely higher than official figures
Chilean companies attending the Boston Seafood Show were still uncertain about the full effect of the bloom, but said the actual losses are likely higher than official figures.
That said, when numbers caught up, they would give the industry an accurate picture of supply.
IntraFish spoke with Blumar Commercial Director Daniel Montoya about the best way salmon buyers should approach the crisis.
View the video interview here.
--Drew Cherry
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March 9, 10.07 a.m. CLT
Mortalities hit 26.6 million fish
Chilean salmon mortalities hit 26.6 million fish or 103,298 metric tons on Tuesday according to the latest figures from SalmonChile.
Of this total, 96,200 metric tons or 23.9 million fish correspond to Atlantic salmon, and 7,098 metric tons or 2.7 million to coho salmon.
--IntraFish Media
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March 9, 10.07 a.m CLT
Supply side shock on the cards
Analysts at Nordea Markets are expecting to see a global supply shock, sending the price of Chilean salmon skyrocketing and supporting the current high prices of Norwegian salmon.
The severe toxic algal bloom has taken out an estimated 20 million to 25 million fish so far -- or 80,000 to 100,000 metric tons -- and will inevitably result in more European salmon being sent to the US market, Kolbjorn Giskeodegaard, senior analyst at Nordea, wrote in an update.
Before this "dramatic event", Nordea estimated a total drop in supply of 95,000 metric tons for 2016-17.
“We now expect the annualized harvesting level in 12 months to be 180,000 tons lower than in 2015,” said Giskeodegaard.
Parallel to this, biomass in Norway is now 7 percent lower than in 2015 and the analyst is expecting a drop in harvesting of 60,000 metric tons.
"This unexpected contraction on the supply side can no doubt be classified as a supply side shock," said Giskeodegaard.
Additionally, with the favorable USD/EUR rate, US buyers are expected to set a higher price and buyers in the EU will have to pay up in order to secure availability of fish.
“We expect the effect will be a massive re-pricing, first for Chilean salmon in the US and Brazil, and then in Europe, bringing prices not seen since the 1980s,” said Giskeodegaard.
--IntraFish Media
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March 9, 6.10 a.m. CLT
Camanchaca estimates cost of algae impact at $5 million
Chilean salmon farmer Camanchaca estimates the direct impact of the algal bloom hitting the country to the company’s results in 2016 will be around $5 million (€4.6 million).
Before the algal bloom affecting three of the company’s sites -- Puelche, Manihueico and Contao -- the centers had 856,000, 984,000 and 1,078 fish, respectively to be harvested both in 2016 and 2017.
--IntraFish Media
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March, 9, 5.30 a.m. CLT
Echos of ISA crisis as Chile's algae bloom disaster deepens
So far, it is impossible to estimate the reach of the disaster, but it is already affecting the industry on all levels -- production, companies’ value, international reputation and employment -- reminding producers of scenes from 2007 when the Chilean aquaculture industry faced its biggest crisis in history with the outbreak of infectious salmon anemia (ISA).
--Lola Navarro
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March 8, 6.54 p.m CLT
Chilean salmon mortalities hit 96,000 metric tons
Chilean salmon mortalities hit 24.8 million fish or 96,254 metric tons on Monday, based on a projected harvest weight, according to the latest figures from SalmonChile, the official body told IntraFish.
Of this total, 89,991 metric tons or 22.4 million fish correspond to Atlantic salmon, and 6,263 metric tons or 2.4 million to coho salmon.
Mortalities increased 13.23 percent, from March 5 to March 7, jumping from 85,000 metric tons to 96,254 metric tons over the period.
--IntraFish Media
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March, 8, 5.30 p.m. CLT
2,200 metric tons of dead salmon to be processed in Biobio
A total of 2,200 metric tons of dead salmon arrived to the Chilean Biobio region to be processed as fishmeal, according to Chile’s National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (Sernapesca).
So far, Camanchaca is the only company transferring fish to the processing plants in the region, but other producers such as Fiordo Austral are authorized to process fish in the region.
Rodrigo Valencia, regional director at Sernapesca in Biobio, said they are collaborating with other official bodies to ensure environmental norms are being followed.
“We want to make sure that plants accepting mortalities meet the legal requirements to process the product,” he said.
--IntraFish Media
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March, 7, 10.53 p.m. CLT
Chile could dump dead salmon out to sea
Dead salmon resulting from the algal bloom in Chile will be thrown out to sea, in cases where decomposition levels are so high it is not possible to process the fish as fishmeal, said Jose Miguel Burgos, director at Chile’s National Service of Fisheries and Aquaculture.
“Chile is member to the London Protocol, which allows this possibility under strict conditions, but it has to be completely justified,” Burgos said.
--IntraFish Media
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March, 5, 6.57 a.m. CLT
Natural catastrophes a threat for salmon farmers 'anywhere'
“Jelly fish and algal blooms can be influenced by environmental conditions and under certain circumstances, may cause challenges for salmon farmers,” said Scott Landsburgh, CEO at the Scottish Salmon Producers’ Organization.
In addition, Steve Bracken, business support manager at Marine Harvest Scotland, said algal blooms are a phenomenon that occur in many parts of the world and “potentially could affect aquaculture anywhere.”
--IntraFish Media
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March, 5, 5.56 a.m. CLT
29 farms affected by algal bloom
Chile's Nartional Service of Fisheries and Aquaculture (Sernapesca) announced mortalities affected 29 salmon farms.
The companies reporting mortalities are AquaChile, Blumar, Camanchaca, Salmones Austral, Marine Harvest, Australis Mar, Salmones Humboldt, Marine Farm, Cermaq, Ventisqueros, Caleta Bay and Salmones Aysen.
--IntraFish Media
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March, 7, 5.56 a.m. CLT
85,000 metric tons of salmon dead to date
The algal bloom reported in a number of Chilean salmon farms in Los Lagos and Chiloe has caused estimated losses of 20 million fish to date, the equivalent of 85,000 metric tons of Atlantic salmon had the fish grown to normal harvesting weight, according to SalmonChile.
--IntraFish Media
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March, 3, 12.42 p.m. CLT
Chile's algae bloom crisis: Who's insured, who's not?
The financial impact of the algal bloom affecting Chile's Region X is becoming clear as major companies on the Santiago Stock Exchange report their losses, but with some companies uninsured, the pain will be felt more keenly by some companies than others.
Producers already reporting millions in losses from ongoing issue.
--Lola Navarro
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March, 3, 5.32 a.m. CLT
Algae to kill 100% of Marine Harvest production in region X
Alll of Marine Harvest's salmon production in region X in Chile will be lost as a result of the algal bloom hitting the area, the company confirmed.
"2.7 million out of 2.9 million fish have now suffered mortality due to algal bloom," Marine Harvest said in an official statement.
"The remaining 0.2 million fish are most likely also lost."
--IntraFish Media
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March, 3, 4.37 a.m. CLT
Chilean salmon production will suffer massive hit from algal bloom
Chilean salmon companies will see their production fall by 10 percent to 13 percent in 2016 due to the algae bloom affecting farms in Region X.
Execs told IntraFish companies are already reporting millions in losses, algal bloom is also affecting production of 2017.
Salmon mortality hit 18,000 metric tons on March, 1, or eight million fish in total, Felipe Sandoval, president of SalmonChile, told IntraFish.
"These are the latest official figures, but they have gone up in the last 24 hours, and they will continue to rise."
--Lola Navarro
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March, 2, 11.23 a.m. CLT
Chilean salmon farmers see shares plummet
Chilean companies announce millionaire losses to the algal bloom affecting the X and XI regions, leading value drops on the Santiago Stock Exchange.
AquaChile’s shares dropped 9.2 percent on Tuesday, followed by Australis -- who saw its shares fall 8.97 percent over the period -- Camanchaca and Blumar, experiencing a decrease of 5.95 percent and 1.66 percent, respectively.
--IntraFish Media
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March 1, 5.17 a.m. CLT
Chilean salmon sector suffers heavy losses on algal bloom
Chilean salmon companies in Los Lagos are reporting heavy losses on the back of an algal bloom in the region.
AquaChile is claiming some 2.3 million Atlantic salmon have been affected by algae in the region of Los Lagos, while Blumar is reporting a loss of 110,000 fish.
Marine Harvest also issued a release to the stock exchange stating it had lost around 1.2 million fish to the bloom at its sites in Punta Redonda, Huar Sur and Huar Norte. The company has 2.9 million fish stocked at the sites, with an average live weight ranging from 1.5 to 2.5 kilos.
--IntraFish Media
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February 29, 9.00 a.m. CLT
Algal bloom affecting Australis production
Salmon mortalities in the Australis Puluqui center are estimated to have caused losses of $6.5 million (€5.9 million), as algal bloom affected production of 1.1 million fish, of an average weight of 1 kilo, implying a total biomass of 1,100 metric tons.
--IntraFish Media
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February 29, 9.00 a.m. CLT
Blumar reports algae presence in Caicura center
In a note published on the Santiago Stock exchange, Blumar informs that its Caicura center, located in the second district, was affected by an algal bloom "that started producing significant mortalities on Feb. 24.
"The total amount of fish at the Caicura center before the event was 1.2 million Atlantic salmon, with an average weight of 1.6 kilos, and a value of $7.5 million [€6.8 million] as of Jan. 31," the company said.
--IntraFish Media
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February 25, 11.10 a.m. CLT
Camanchaca facing mortalities due to algal bloom
Chilean salmon producer Camanchaca reports the presence of harmful algae in three of its sites in Region X; and warns mortalities are expected to reach 1.5 million salmon, amounting to 3,400 metric tons.
The centers -- Pueclche, Manihueico and Contao -- had approximately 3 million salmon in total, and the value of the stocks at the sites, as of Jan. 31, was estimated to be $22.2 million (€20.1 million).
--IntraFish Media
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