February 25, 2013

In 2012, Ecuador exported 2,473 tonnes of shrimp to Chile, a 15% increase over 2011.

This is according to statistics from the National Customs Service (Customs).

About 16% of the total sales were sold by Empacadora Grupo Granmar S.A. (Empagran). This company, with a subsidiary in Chile, is the category leader for the fourth consecutive year, Terra reported.

In six years, the Ecuadorian shrimp consumption tripled: in 2006, Chileans consumed 858 tonnes of shrimp.

"The shrimp consumption boom in Chile is a very important trend, so we will strive to increase the delivery our products to all regions of that country," said Juan Carlos Marin, Empagra CEO.

"Thanks to the high quality of our products and the significant rise in the number of shrimp consumers in the country, we have positioned ourselves as market leaders, having traded about 400 tonnes during 2012," the executive continued.

Moreover, Marin expects this year to be "even better" than the previous one. He indicated that the projections "show that the consumer market will be around 2,800 tonnes."