Puerto Montt, Chile-based salmon-farming firm Multi X touted its ultra-premium ArkA “Antarctic” salmon at the 2024 edition of Seafood Expo North America (SENA), as well as new Latitude 45-branded products.
The ArkA brand was launched in 2021 into retail, including hot- and cold-smoked products. The brand features Atlantic salmon farmed in Chile’s Region XII – the Magallanes region – that are antibiotic-free, Aquaculture Stewardship Council-certified, and Best Aquaculture Practices 4-Star-certified.
At this year's show, Multi X celebrated an expansion of its ArkA line to include and foodservice offerings at SENA in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A. on 11 March.
“ArkA is special. There is a need in fine dining for ultra-premium, antibiotic-free Antarctic salmon, and ArkA is the solution,” Multi X Business Development Director Jorge Goles Niemann said. “We are excited to bring ArkA to those looking for a consistent supply of ultra-premium, antibiotic-free Antarctic salmon that is 100 percent traceable throughout our entire value chain. From farm to harvest, to shipping and distribution, our vertically integrated operation makes ArkA one of the most transparent and sustainable salmon brands available today.”
Goles Niemann praised the salmon’s “firm texture, intense color, and high retention of omega-3s” – citing company studies showing it contains 2,470 milligrams of omega-3s per 3-ounce serving.
Multi X Chief Sales and Marketing Officer Fernando Pérez said his firm was also debuting Latitude 45 Smoked Salmon Candy Bites and Smoked Chipotle Salmon to “bring consumers a ready-to-eat hot smoked product that inspires at-home cooks with familiar sweet and spicy taste profiles.”
“We’re proud of how much consumers enjoy our products and celebrate the love American shoppers have shown our Latitude 45 brand, welcoming it into their weekly meal rotations making it a [top] household favorite salmon brand,” Pérez said.
Multi X is Chile’s biggest salmon smoker, and the company is leaning on its expertise and size to cater its offerings to a changing U.S. consumer marketplace, Pérez said.
“It’s in a grab-and-go retail pack, which is a trend we are following with several case-ready products,” Pérez told SeafoodSource. “Today, young people basically make a decision just in front of the case. If you are able to touch that decision with nice packaging and a nice presentation, you will be the winner.”
Pérez said Multi X smokes its fish within 24 hours of harvest, which differentiates it between its competition in Chile. Latitude 45 has had success with its cold-smoked salmon, with flavor offerings developed internally by the company’s product development team. Hot-smoked salmon is not as well known in the U.S., Pérez acknowledged, but he said Multi X is trying to formulate products that get Americans to try it out.
“For example, it fits as a topper for a salad in a very good way,” he said.
The U.S. market represents approximately 60 percent of Multi X’s total sales, and the company operates an office in Miami, Florida. Multi X has done very well with its U.S. fresh and frozen sales in the past year, despite the difficult economy, according to Pérez, and its value-added offerings continue to evolve.
“Out of the pandemic, we’ve seen some changes in terms of consumer behavior, as well as with consumption per capita and the size of the market,” Pérez said. “For us, that’s an opportunity to try new things to boost consumption. The U.S. is by far the market that we see as the best opportunity. If you compare it to Europe, where almost 70 percent of the offering is value-added, only 40 percent is value-added in the U.S. So, offering these kinds of innovations in terms of packaging, flavors, and variety, we are hoping to continue to find formulas that work.”
That goes for finding retail partners as well, Pérez said.
“In terms of the value-added proposition, you need to have a good mix of sales channels, with mass retailers, club stores, and the grocery sector, and you need to work with them all one on one in order to identify what is their strategy in terms of branding and costs,” Pérez said. “We know that, today, the economy is challenging; we need to be flexible in how we develop solutions.”
With backing from Cargill and Mitsui, growth is in the upcoming plans for Multi X, Pérez confirmed, with Mexico and Brazil being targets of interest for the company.
