Pharmaq and Intesal host sea lice workshop
With the support of Intesal, the salmon technical institute of SalmonChile, the Pharmaq office in Chile invited Svein Alexandersen, salmon expert from the company’s headquarters in Norway to give a presentation on the proper application of deltametrin as a treatment for sea lice. Alexandersen began by explaining the various application methods that Norway has tried and which one demonstrates the best and most cost effective results. Deltametrin has proven effective in combating Lepeophtheirus sp., the northern hemisphere species of sea lice, but in the southern hemisphere and especially Chile the species is Caligus. According to Alexandersen the medication is effective on both types of sea lice, just as the well known drug SLICETM (emamectin benzoate) works on both northern and southern hemisphere sea lice species. The most important message of Alexandersen’s presentation was the point that in order to get the best results possible from the medication, it must be used simultaneously throughout an entire geographic region, in a coordinated effort between salmon companies and the authorities. This is the same message given by Schering-Plough with the introduction of emamectin benzoate over ten years ago. But because the salmon producers did not prioritize the need to work together in a strictly coordinated manner, the result was the evolution of a Caligus sp. that today is resistant to emamectin benzoate. The proliferation of Caligus, especially during the summer months, is the leading cause of fish health problems throughout Chile's salmon industry.
