Chilean salmon-farming firm Multi X saw its top-line revenues drop nearly 20 percent in 2024 as the company sold less salmon to all of its markets.
The firm’s 2024 top-line revenues came in at USD 705 million (EUR 646 million) – 19.7 percent down from the USD 878 million (EUR 804 million) it posted in 2023.
During the year, Multi X sold USD 408 million (EUR 374 million) worth of Atlantic salmon to the United States, its main market, a 22.6 percent decrease from the USD 526 million (EUR 482 million) sent to the U.S. the previous year. The company attributed the drop to weaker consumer demand.
Elsewhere, the company sold USD 94.1 million (EUR 86.2 million) worth of Atlantic salmon to Brazil, slipping 0.1 percent from the USD 94.2 million (EUR 86.3 million) it sold in 2023. A 5 percent drop in sales volume to Brazil was partially offset by higher average prices due to active demand, according to the firm.
Domestically, Multi X sold USD 43.5 million (EUR 39.8 million) of salmon to Chile, marking a 14.3 percent drop year over year. The company said that decreased sales volumes domestically were due in part to higher allocation to other markets such as Brazil.
Multi X sold USD 23.7 million (EUR 21.7 million) of Atlantic salmon and USD 5.9 million (EUR 5.4 million) of trout to all Asian markets excluding China during 2024, compared to USD 26.3 million (EUR 24.1 million) and USD 8.5 million (EUR 7.8 million), respectively, in 2023.
China purchased USD 18.4 million (EUR 16.8 million) of Atlantic salmon from Multi X in 2024, dropping 49.1 percent from 2023’s total of USD 36.1 million (EUR 33.1 million). Multi X noted in its full-year financial report that demand in the country has remained weak and even below pre-pandemic levels, with purchasers favoring proteins from other origins that have fallen more in price.
Finally, sales in Europe were down by 27.6 percent in 2024, dropping to USD 13 million (EUR 11.9 million) from USD 18 million (EUR 16.5 million), mainly due to lower sales volume along with lower average prices.
Sales of Atlantic salmon to all other markets fell 18.5 percent to USD 72.2 million (EUR 66.1 million) from USD 88.6 million (EUR 81.2 million).
Mitigating some of the sales drops, Multi X brought down the cost of goods sold 17 percent to USD 659 million (EUR 604 million), while favorable fair value earnings helped boost its gross earnings to USD 70 million (EUR 64.1 million) compared to USD 52.3 million (EUR 47.9 million) in 2023.
However, this was insufficient to lift the company out of the red. It closed the year with USD 3.6 million (EUR 3.3 million) in net losses, compared to losses of USD 7.8 million (EUR 7.1 million) in 2023.
In the fourth quarter of 2024, the company's Atlantic salmon harvest volume reached 24,969 metric tons (MT) whole fish equivalent (WFE), a 19.9 percent decrease year over year. The average weight for the quarter was 4.74 kilograms WFE, down from 4.82 kilograms WFE in the same quarter in 2023.
In Q4, Multi X achieved operating revenues of USD 175 million (EUR 160 million), which was 15.5 percent lower than the same quarter of the previous year. This was due to decreased sales volumes of Atlantic salmon, which fell 22.1 percent from 29,524 MT WFE to 22,998 MT WFE year over year. Sales prices rose in the period, though, jumping from USD 5.47 (EUR 5.01) per pound in the fourth quarter of 2023 to USD 5.75 (EUR 5.27) in the same quarter of 2024.
Consolidated net losses for the three-month period, before fair value adjustment, reached USD 4.8 million (EUR 4.4 million), compared to losses of USD 11.3 million (EUR 10.3 million) in the fourth quarter of 2023.
The company also continues to face regulatory pressure from Chilean authorities.
In July 2024, Chile’s Superintendency of the Environment (SMA) filed charges against Multi X for overproduction during five consecutive production cycles from 2014 to 2021 at its Cholga production center, located in the Las Guaitecas National Reserve in the southern Aysén region of Chile. The infringement was classified as extremely serious because it was seen as a repeat offense that caused environmental damage in a protected wildlife area. Multi X faces fines up to CLP 7.89 billion (USD 8.3 million, EUR 7.6 million), the revocation of environmental licenses, and potential operational closure of the farm in question.
Further, in November, Chile’s National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (Sernapesca) reported that Multi X had been sentenced to pay a CLP 20 million (USD 20,500, EUR 18,800) fine for failing to extract daily mortalities and for not using exclusive containers to prevent possible spills or cross-contamination into the environment or other farming operations at its Puyuhuapi 2 farming center.
