October 30, 2009
Chile aquaculture output down almost 10 percent in first nine months
The total Chilean fish and shellfish landings for the first nine months of 2009 were almost 10-percent below the same period in the previous year. Harvests in all the main aquaculture sectors were also down.
Total fish and shellfish landings through September in Chile totalled 3.6 million tonnes - 9.8-percent lower than the 3.9 million tonnes accumulated in the same period of 2008, the Fisheries Under-Secretariat (SUBPESCA) revealed.
According to the latest Fisheries and Aquaculture Sector Report, the wild capture fisheries and aquaculture sectors contributed some 3.1 million tonnes and 485,000 tonnes, respectively, to the total harvest in the first nine months of the year.
The aquaculture harvest totalled 438,900 tonnes through August, 16-percent slide from the 522,500 tonnes harvested in the same period of 2008, reports by the National Fisheries Service (SERNAPESCA) reveal.
The main products harvested were Atlantic salmon, mussels and rainbow trout, accounting for 32.2 percent, 31.2 percent and 19.7 percent of total production at the national level, respectively.
The Atlantic salmon harvest totalled 141,500 tonnes through August - 28.4-percent below the volume accumulated in the same period of 2008 (197,700 tonnes). Most of the production came from Regions XI (84,300 tonnes) and X (49,000 tonnes).
The mussel harvest, almost entirely produced by Region X, fell by 14.4 percent from 160,000 tonnes through August 2008 to 137,000 tonnes during the same period this year.
Meanwhile, Pacific salmon harvests totalled 86,500 tonnes over the period, 5.3-percent less than the 91,300 tonnes reported through August 2008. The majority of production originated from Regions X and XI, with 51,900 tonnes and 30,700 tonnes, respectively.
According to reports, an estimated 63.2 percent of wild fish landings consisted of pelagic resources, a slightly higher percentage than the 61.6 percent registered last year. Jack mackerel, common sardine, and anchovy landings constituted 24.3 percent, 22.7 percent and 22.3 percent, respectively.
