Dutch company Hendrix Genetics is opening a new plant in Curarrehue, Chile, for the production of salmon and trout eggs.
Hendrix Genetics, a leading global aquaculture company, builds the new factory in cooperation with Corfo, the Chilean economic investment agency. The processing location will be officially opened at the end of November.
Genetic improvement
The breeding of Atlantic salmon eggs will be the main activity at the Chilean breeding location, together with the breeding of trout eggs, equipped for farming in seawater, Hendrix Genetics marketing and communications director Marcel Huijsmans told Salmon Business.
Hendrix Genetics acquired Troutlodge, the world’s leading supplier of live trout eggs, in 2014. The location in Chile was part of that acquisition, which led to the shaping of a new company: Hendrix Genetics Aquaculture Chile, formed to establish an independent Atlantic salmon breeding programme, backed by genetics research.
Hendrix Genetics has now completely rebuild the Chilean location for the production of salmon and trout eggs.
“We bought the location because we saw the potential for the Chilean salmon market. We have revived the existing breeding program salmon and seawater trout,” says Huijsman. “We since have completely rebuild and upgraded the location. Next year our salmon for egg production will be in full use.”
“The Chilean salmon industry is flourishing again, after a difficult period,” he continues.“The demand for locally bred salmon eggs is growing. With this location we will be able to provide the Chilean salmon industry with locally bred salmon eggs. We want to optimise the competitiveness of the industry, on issues such as growth, resistance to diseases and parasites.”
Shrimp breeding
Hendrix Genetics is a Dutch animal breeding and research company, with a growing focus on aquaculture and linked breeding programmes for salmon and trout in Chile, the US and the UK.
Hendrix Genetics entered the aquaculture sector in 2010, when it bought Scottish and salmon egg and smoltproducer Landcatch. In 2014 the company became a shareholder in trout egg producer Troutlodge and acquired 100 percent of the shares in 2016.
Hendrix Genetics operates fourteen breeding and production locations on three continents and delivers genetics to the global aquaculture industry.
Recently the company added shrimp breeding to its portfolio, when it partnered with Integrated Aquaculture International LLC (iAqua) to accelerate the Kona Bay shrimp breeding program based in Hawaii and Malaysia.
