– The program, which began operating in the first quarter of 2020, promotes optimization in the use of antibiotics.
April 27, 2021.- The Canal Bertrand Farming Center of Blumar in Magallanes became the first Atlantic salmon center in Chile to obtain certification from the Program for the Optimization in the Use of Antimicrobials, PROA, delivered by Sernapesca.
The certification promotes that the center does not use antimicrobials, which requires compliance with strict biosecurity measures.
“The PROA Salmon certification, which is our antimicrobial use optimization program in salmon farming, obtained by the Canal Bertrand center, is very important to us since it is the first center with the Atlantic salmon species to obtain this certification. This is a follow-up that is done throughout the entire production cycle of the center; the company registers, presents us with its health management plan, its strategy for how it will manage the fish, how it will monitor diseases, how it will control them, this with measures beyond what is established in current regulations. Therefore, the company presented us with its health strategy that included from fish in the freshwater phase to vaccination strategies, special diets, etc. This is reflected in good health performance that this center had. For us at Sernapesca it is very important, and for the sector to continue advancing in this type of certifications, continue advancing in biosecurity practices, early detection and in these strategies to move forward in more sustainable salmon farming,”, highlighted the Deputy Director of Aquaculture of the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service, Marcela Lara.
“This achievement sets a precedent not only for the company, but for the Chilean industry, since Canal Bertrand became the first salmon farming center with PROA certification, which fills us with pride. Now we will continue working to achieve the maximum number of antibiotic-free certifications, ASC, and of course PROA, not only for our farming centers, but also for each of the cages, which would be tremendous added value to increase competitiveness in our industry and develop in the most sustainable way possible,”, commented the Farming Manager of Blumar Salmon, Pedro Pablo Laporte
Meanwhile, the Regional Manager of Magallanes, Ignacio Covacevich added: “this is a very important milestone, beyond the certification. Our work has been oriented toward the same objective that PROA requires, so it is a validation of what has been accomplished. Our focus is to produce sustainably with great concern for fish welfare. For this, we must keep our eyes wide open and monitor constantly, have health strategies with functional diets that are activated in a timely manner, have the logistics to avoid fasting. It is a very complete team effort, which begins with good planning, selection of the strain suitable for Magallanes environmental conditions and dedicated work, with care in freshwater and at sea centers, in addition to very good coordination with operational activities to achieve a good cycle”.
Finally, regarding the challenges for the company to obtain PROA certification in all Magallanes centers, Covacevich stated: “Our strategy aims to supply the minimum amount of antimicrobials and for that it is very important to monitor fish from the freshwater cycle and functional diets with food supplements, when we detect that there is some weakness or risk of disease. In the case of Canal Bertrand the result is fish that were never treated, this means that they have not received antibiotics, neither in the freshwater cycle during the first 10 months of salmon, nor in the sea cycle, during the following 18 months”.
