A better year for Camanchaca
Chilean farmer’s Atlantic salmon harvest was almost a quarter higher in 2022
Chilean fish farmer Salmones Camanchaca harvested 44,540 tonnes (whole fish equivalent) of Atlantic salmon last year, an increase of almost a quarter compared to 2021 when production was impacted by algal blooms in the Comau Fjord, Los Lagos.
Total 2022 harvest volume, including coho salmon, was 48,568 tonnes WFE, the company said in a stock market update.
The average weight of Atlantic salmon harvested in 2022 was 4.9 kg, and the average weight of coho was 4.2 kg. Harvest volume of Atlantic salmon in the fourth quarter of 2022 was 9,659 tonnes with an average weight of 5.2 kg.
More coho in 2023
Camanchaca, which is Chile’s seventh-biggest Atlantic salmon farmer by volume, estimates that it will harvest between 44,000 and 46,000 tonnes of Atlantic salmon in 2023.
It also anticipates harvesting 10,000-12,000 tonnes of coho in the coming coho season, including 2,000 tonnes expected to be harvested in January 2024.
Camanchaca increased its focus on coho following the loss of 1.6 million Atlantic salmon because of algal blooms in 2021. Coho are harvested before the time of year when most blooms occur and have a natural resistance to sea lice.
The full Q4 2022 report will be released on 22 February.
