Chilean salmon and trout farmer AquaChile has published its 2018 Sustainability Report, bringing together the operations of the companies under its umbrella: AquaChile, Los Fiordos, Salmones Magallanes and Friosur salmon area assets.
Chile’s salmon sector saw significant consolidation in 2018, with Chilean food giant Agrosuper buying 67 percent of AquaChile in an USD 850 million (EUR 771 million) deal. The same day that deal was announced, AquaChile acquired Salmones Magallanes and Pesquera Eden for USD 255 million (EUR 231 million); weeks previous to that, Agrosuper purchased Friosur through its salmon farmer Los Fiordos.
Calling 2018 “a key year in the history of the company,” AquaChile General Manager Sady Delgado highlighted that the report includes “the sustainability efforts carried out individually by all the companies that today make up AquaChile. At the time when many of these sustainability efforts were carried out, the companies operated independently of each other. Consolidating everything in this report is the first step to towards unifying the sustainability efforts of today’s AquaChile.”
The company is Chile’s largest salmon producer and the second largest worldwide, which “implies opportunities and also huge responsibilities,” he added. “Our focus is to work hard to make salmon production more efficient and sustainable, contribute to the development of the geographical areas where we are present, deliver the highest levels of service to our customers and offer a portfolio of value-added products.”
One area of focus was AquaChile’s officially ending in 2018 its use of Chilean lakes for the farming production process, in which it said would make its operation more efficient and sustainable.
With USD 1.2 billion (EUR 1 billion) in 2018 sales and 188,050 tons of harvested salmon and trout, AquaChile has commercial presence in 40 countries, with more than 350 direct customers. It has 5,515 employees in Chile, 15 freshwater facilities and 139 farming sites at sea. Its main export destinations are the U.S. (36 percent), Japan (20 percent) and Latin America (12 percent).
The company’s sustainability report was prepared following the GRI (Global Reporting Initiative) Essential option standards, incorporating the GSI (Global Salmon Initiative) Sustainability Report indicators, which were audited by Deloitte.
Image courtesy of AquaChile
