Chile lowers its fish exports by 2%

Chile registered a 2% drop in its exports of fish, crustaceans and molluscs in 2019, with a value of $ 5.781 million.

The main destinations of these sales were the United States, Japan, Brazil, Russia, China and Mexico,

Notably, Chile ranks as the leader in Latin American fish, shellfish and mollusc exports.

It is also the largest exporter of fresh and chilled salmon, and frozen salmon in the world, beating Norway.

Fish exports

Exports in this sector registered a record of $ 5.781 billion in 2018. Its foreign sales mainly comprise exports of fish fillets, molluscs and, to a lesser extent, crustaceans.

According to data from the Chilean government, this country exported salmon worth $ 4.66 billion in 2019, a year-on-year drop of 1.5 percent.

Other products that it exports are trout, hake and canned fish.

Regional production

Fishing and aquaculture play an important role in the region, offering a valuable source of protein, livelihoods for millions of households, and export earnings.

Peru, Chile, Mexico, Brazil and Argentina are the main fish producers in the Latin American and Caribbean region, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

Although the world marine catch remained very constant during the past decade, the corresponding to Latin America and the Caribbean fell considerably, although in 2017 and 2018 it registered some recovery.

This decreasing trend is particularly evident in Peru and Chile, the main fish producers in Latin America, and is due mostly to the implementation of stricter management plans, in addition to reflecting climate variability (including the known phenomenon like El Niño).

In some cases, increasing overexploitation is also a cause. El Niño has been responsible for the decrease in anchovy catch by Peru and Chile; in the case of Peru, the anchovy is equivalent to more than 75% of the total marine catch.