Chilean salmon bosses confident of 'positive changes' says analyst

Leading seafood sector analyst Dag Sletmo has highlighted renewed optimism in the Chilean salmon industry created by president José Antonio Kast, who last week became the first sitting premier to attend the biennial Aquasur trade fair in Puerto Montt.

Sletmo, of DNB Seafood, who also attended the event, said Kast’s positive words were encouraging.

“Kast does not control Congress, which could be a challenge in terms of renewing the aquaculture legislation. But most salmon farmers seem to believe that he can still make large and positive changes, and that a lot can be done administratively without going through Congress,” Sletmo said in a post on LinkedIn.

Pragmatic fixes

He added that during a panel discussion at Aquasur, the chief executives of fish farming companies said the government is signalling a shift away from sweeping legal reforms and toward pragmatic, administrative regulatory fixes.

“The focus is on streamlining permits, updating existing rules, and improving coordination between agencies to deliver quicker results in a sector long hampered by bureaucracy.”

Kast’s visit to Aquasur was welcomed by bosses of some of the country’s biggest salmon producers, including Mowi Chile chief Fernando Villarroel, and Sady Delgado, general manager of AquaChile, which produced 250,933 tonnes (whole fish equivalent) of salmon in 2024, around 60% of which was Atlantic salmon and the rest coho.

'We're relieved, to be honest'

“[Kast's visit] shows that the industry is extremely important for the economic development of the southern zone. That confidence is positive for the future, because we were worried about what might happen, but now we're much more relieved, to be honest,” Villarroel told Fish Farming Expert’s Chilean sister site, Salmonexpert.cl.

Mowi expects to increase its harvest volumes in Chile from 78,000 gutted weight tons in 2025 to 82,000 gwt this year and 95,000 gwt by 2029.

Growth may also be helped by finance minister Jorge Quiroz’s promise to speed up the relocation of 200 salmon farms.

“We hope, as announced, that the process for the various concession relocations will be facilitated. This is a starting point and a sign of confidence to continue moving forward and provide security for investment in Chile,” said Villarroel.

He added: “Chile has the geographical and environmental conditions to be able to double salmon production; the issue is what the speed of growth will be, and that must be defined.”

Growth must match demand

AquaChile boss Delgado said he was “extremely grateful” for Kast’s visit to Aquasur. “I believe it sends a very important message to the workers and the companies that are helping Chile grow,” he told Salmonexpert.

But he was cautious about ambitions to double the country’s salmon production. Norway and Chile are the world’s largest and second-largest producers of Atlantic salmon, and increased year-on-year harvest volume by 12% and 14% respectively in 2025, with a consequent negative impact on prices.

“The industry will continue to grow as long as demand continues to support us,” said Delgado. “When customers allow us to grow, companies grow at the same rate, and demand looks good.”