The Chilean Salmon Council, a guild made up of AquaChile, Australis, Cermaq, Mowi and Salmones Aysén, says the number of workers they employed in Q2 2022 has increased by nearly 6 percent, or 918 people, over Q2 2021.
“The different figures in the report show an improvement in the generation of employment by salmon farming, compatible with the rise in exports of Chilean salmon to the world,” says Joanna Davidovich, executive director of the Salmon Council.
The group altogether produce more than half of Chilean salmon production. The increase in the number of employees brings to 17,245 the number of people employed by the group per month. The figure excludes the indirect jobs that are generated throughout the entire production chain around salmon farming.
Unemployment rates at the Los Lagos, Aysén and Magallanes regions, where salmon farming is focused, are lower by two percentage points than the national average of 7.8 percent.
This year’s growth in employment numbers is mainly due to the greater availability of workers, the opening of new processing plants and the high demand for Chilean salmon in the world.
Read also: Chilean salmon producers post 1.6-percent growth in number of workers amidst robust market
“Salmon farming is an engine of growth and employment in the southern macro zone of Chile. As a country we must take advantage of our comparative advantages to produce salmon, given the strong demand for Chilean salmon in the world that goes to countries such as the United States, Japan and Brazil, among others. With this we generate productive activity, and a wide value chain of enterprises and suppliers of different goods and services associated with salmon farming that multiply activity and employment in the regions,” says Davidovich.
The five salmon producers see a bright future for Chilean salmon exports. They warned, however, that global demand could get impacted by uncertainty in oil prices and logistical difficulties. The regulatory uncertainty in Chile could hinder the growth of supply, they added.
