Orfa Cabrera has been hired by Maine-based company Whole Oceans as its new hatchery manager, according to a 15 October announcement.
Cabrera comes to the recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) firm with over three decades of experience in the salmon industry. She spent over 20 years serving hatcheries in her native Chile, overseeing planning, budgeting, personnel administration, equipment control, and data analysis in her various roles.
Previously, as a freshwater manager in RAS for Marine Harvest Chile, Cabrera was able to hone her expertise within the growing aquaculture subsector, working in a hatchery that produced 40 million fry. She comes to Whole Oceans most recently from Tassal Group Australia, where she served as a senior technical officer, a position that saw her helping to develop and improve the rearing of Atlantic salmon, focusing on areas of incubation, first feeding, and smolt.
Whole Oceans CEO Jacob Bartlett said the company was eager to welcome Cabrera aboard.
“We are thrilled to bring Orfa Cabrera on the Whole Oceans team,” he said.
Cabrera holds a degree in engineering fisheries management with maximum distinction from Catholic University Puerto Montt City, Chile. She also received a marine technician degree from Catholic University, Talcahuano, Chile.
Whole Oceans recently purchased a plot of land once occupied by a former paper mill in Bucksport, Maine to build a salmon RAS facility. The milestone for the company is being viewed as “just the beginning,” Whole Oceans' former President Jason Mitchell told SeafoodSource in late June. The initial goal for the Bucksport facility is to reach a capacity of 5,000 metric tons (MT) of salmon each year, a number that could grow over time.
