Chilean salmon producer Camanchaca announced the successful completion of the Global Aquaculture Alliance’s Best Aquaculture Practices audit for its Petrohue hatchery on 21 November, meaning the producer is now a 4-star BAP-certified operation.
Located in the Los Lagos region, the land-based Petrohué hatchery had been badly damaged in the eruption of the Calbuco Volcano in 2015. Camanchaca, however, was able to quickly rebuild and reinstate the hatchery, which uses recirculated well water for minimal environmental effect and high-quality smolt. The BAP certification of the hatchery, paired with the other three BAP stars Camanchaca received in 2012 when it became the first salmon company in the world to earn that distinction, means that all areas of the company’s operation (hatchery, farming sites, feed suppliers and processing plants) are socially and environmentally responsible by GAA standards.
“This certification process guarantees consumers, supermarkets and food service distributors, that Camanchaca’s salmon products are raised and processed according to the best practices of the aquaculture industry,” said the company in a release.
The certification “ensures that our salmon production is carried out in a socially and environmentally responsible manner. It is a great step for our company, especially after our hatchery was destroyed by the eruption of the Calbuco Volcano,” added Jorge Fernández, general manager of Camanchaca’s salmon division.
The Petrohue hatchery has an annual production capacity of 14 million smolts, said Fernández, and can now withstand an event similar to the volcano eruption of 2015 after the company increased the structure’s weight resistance.
