(fis.com) Fishing and aquaculture product exports in Chile reached a value of USD 1,694 million in the first four months of 2012. This figure represents a rise of 8.6 per cent over the same period of 2011, when USD 1,560 million were obtained.
The volume of exports between January and April 2012 also rose: it experienced an increase of 15.5 per cent, changing from 371,630 -- in 2011 -- to 429,200 tonnes this year, the Undersecretariat of Fisheries (Subpesca) reported.
The structure of participation in relation to the volume of exports was led by frozen products (55.8 per cent of the total), according to the latest Sector Report of Fisheries and Aquaculture by Subpesca.
After these products, fishmeal, fresh chilled products and dried seaweed were located.
The average price of fishery products exported between January and April was USD 3.90 per kilogram, 6 per cent lower than in the same period in 2011.
According to statistics from Subpesca, the main exported product was Atlantic salmon, which accounted for 25.6 per cent of total sales abroad. It was followed by the rainbow trout and the Pacific salmon.
Chilean products were destined to 91 countries, of which the nine major ones accounted for 84.8 per cent of total exports. Among them, Japan, US, Brazil, China and Spain stood out.
With respect to the catching sector, between January and April, 2012 the accumulated volume of fish exports reached 196,700 tonnes worth USD 371.7 million, reflecting a positive variation of 13.3 per cent over the same period last year.
In the first four months 81,450 tonnes of fishmeal were sold abroad for USD 101.8 million while a year before 97,410 tonnes had been exported for USD 158.8 million.
The most important destinations of fishmeal were China, Japan and Spain. Out of the total exported fishmeal, 57.6 per cent had prime quality, 22.5 per cent had super prime quality and 18.5 per cent had standard quality.
Sales of frozen seafood products abroad totalled USD 162.4 million, which represented an increase of 28.4 per cent over the same period in 2011. These products were shipped mainly to Nigeria, US and Spain, with shares in value of 34.5per cent, 17.6 per cent and 8.1 per cent, respectively.
As for canned products, the sales performed in the first four months of 2012 totalled USD 25 million, 4.9 per cent less than a year earlier. The main markets were Spain, Singapore and Hong Kong, with shares of 26.6 per cent, 14.6 per cent and 10.1 per cent, respectively.
Aquaculture sector exports accounted for 78.1 per cent of the total value of foreign sales and for 54.2 per cent of total exports in the first four months of this year, with USD 1,322 million and about 232,000 tonnes.