Sanctions could prove false economy

Christian Pérez Joachim Wessel, general manager of Salmones Friosur, admits that the sanctions will increase Chilean salmon exports to Russia, as well as lead to a short-term increase in prices.   “Chile is capable of supplying frozen salmon and trout to the Russian market," he said. However, Mr Wessel also observes that the Russian market requires a lot of fresh salmon, and exporting Chilean fresh products to Russia is very complex due to logistical limitations.   “This sanction has a short term effect that allows us to move inventory of frozen product and unlock the market for trout,” he added.   “While Chile is able to offer Russia close to the 140,000 tonnes of salmon currently supplied by Norway each year, these sanctions represent no advantage for us in the medium term as all markets are connected and will adjust to similar price levels,” he concluded.