Low average harvest weight for Camanchaca
Chilean fish farmer Salmones Camanchaca, which was challenged by algal blooms in April, harvested 6,425 tonnes of Atlantic salmon with an average weight of 3.9 kilos (whole fish equivalent) in the second quarter of this year, it said in a trading update today.
Camanchaca lost 1.6 million fish - the equivalent of 2,700 tonnes of biomass - because of algal blooms that began in March and carried on into Q2.
The mass mortalities will cause it a direct financial loss of $7.5 million (£5.4m), net of estimated insurance claims, it said in April.
Four sites affected
The appearance of toxic algae in the Comau Fjord, Los Lagos region, progressively affected four Camanchaca farming sites - Leptepu, Porcelana, Loncochalgua and Marilmó – and killed half of the 3.2 million fish being grown.
Camanchaca’s harvest estimate for 2021 is maintained at 41,000 - 43,000 thousand tonnes of Atlantic salmon and about 2,000 tonnes of coho salmon.
The company’s full Q2 2021 report will be released on August 18.
