The Chilean Congress is advancing a bill that proposes to redistribute catch quotas between the artisanal and industrial fishing sectors in the country, aiming to correct what the government considers an historical error.
However, the bill has drawn heavy fishing industry backlash and, for many, has only created more questions than answers.
The existing Chilean fishing law, enacted in 2013 and set to last until 2032, handed control of the vast majority of Chile’s marine resources to a handful of large-scale private fishing firms.
The government has since reversed course and said that the standing legislation is “illegitimate and illegal,” as a number of parliamentarians were accused of accepting bribes to influence the writing of the bill to favor larger seafood firms in a scandal referred to as the “Corpesca case,” named after one of the four large companies that benefited from the law.
In response, Chile President Gabriel Boric has sought to introduce legislation to level the playing field.
The new bill aims to reduce quotas allocated to industrial fishing firms and increase artisanal quotas, but both industrial and artisanal stakeholders have expressed disappointment and anger at the recent developments.
Upset with the delay in legislation and for expecting to receive less than what they have asked for, artisanal fishermen have held violent demonstrations in front of the Chilean Congress building in Santiago and in several cities throughout the country. Large-scale fishing firms, meanwhile, assert that the bill would unfairly and unconstitutionally change the quota system, and workers at those companies have also protested as they are fearful of losing their jobs.
Already, Chilean fishing firm PacificBlu has announced it will shutter its operations 1 January 2026 due to the reduced quotas – a move that would affect nearly 3,000 direct and indirect jobs.
The bill – called the “ley de fraccionamiento” locally – specifically proposes to modify the distribution of quotas in 18 Chilean fisheries. Upon approval, the new law would apply until 2040, with annual adjustments made according to the performance of both industrial and artisanal sectors.
Currently, the law grants the industrial sector 60 percent of the total allowable catch for hake, 80 percent for cuttlefish, and 90 percent for horse mackerel. The artisanal sector has aspired to obtain 70 percent of the hake quota, 90 percent of cuttlefish, and 30 percent of horse mackerel.
A draft bill was approved by a large majority in Chile’s lower house in October 2024, mainly favoring the artisanal sector, but discussions in the upper house have been more contentious, with some senators seeking to tone down measures affecting the industrial sector.
While final quotas are still being defined, a congressional joint committee has …
