For the first time a delegation from Chile was present at Aquaculture United Kingdom 2022, presenting innovative solutions that incorporate technology and innovation.
Chile is the second world producer of salmon and trout with exports that in 2021 exceeded US$5,225 million, which is why it has developed in recent decades a sophisticated industry providing services to the aquaculture industry. This year, the Chilean industry was represented by, four companies at the largest sector show in the United Kingdom, AquacultureUK.
The Chilean companies that participated in the mission were: Innovex (manufacturer of oceanographic instruments for the aquaculture industry), Altum Lab (artificial intelligence solutions), VeHiCe (experts in animal pathology) and Kura BioTech (experts in enzymatic catalysis). These companies showed their interest in working together with their peers in the United Kingdom and to offer them their products and services from Chile.
The commercial director of ProChile in the United Kingdom, Nicolás Poblete, highlighted that “Chile and Scotland are world leaders in the aquaculture industry. For this reason, the ProChile office in the United Kingdom is supporting Chilean companies in the sector that seek to increase their international presence, offering solutions to problems present in both markets. In this case, the Aquaculture UK Fair in Aviemore made it possible to establish new business relationships between companies from both countries, ensuring that national companies held more than 60 meetings during the days of the event. Additionally, the delegation that visited the fair was able to acquire valuable information on the UK market, and was able to publicize the innovative solutions that they have managed to develop in front of an important audience.”
César Luengo, one of the participating Chilean businessmen, expressed that “for us as Innovex, which already does business abroad (specifically Scotland for a couple of years), any type of exposure in this market is favorable. I appreciate the management by ProChile in inviting us to this fair and I think I speak for the rest when I say that it was a fruitful instance for all of us who attended, by generating ties with people from other companies in an industry as global as aquaculture.”
Jose Luis Callejas, from Kura BioTech, expressed that being present at Aquacultura UK “helped us establish contacts with laboratories and universities with which we can develop future technologies and through which we can show our technology in development, which a listeria kit and to be able to see the importance of listeria in the Scottish aquaculture market. The industry insights were very enlightening on how to navigate this industry and the potential it has. We are very grateful for all the help and facilitation to be able to meet with key people in the industry.”
Marcelo Vera, from VeHiCe, valued that this meeting served them “to meet more people from the Scottish market, meet salmon farming suppliers and personally reconnect face to face to strengthen relationships. It is interesting to know first-hand the advances in the market and learn about new problems in order to propose innovative solutions to the market. It was an enriching event, as we value the importance of meeting customers again and meeting new ones. VeHiCe recognizes that face-to-face meetings have more effect and we highly value the personal relationships that are developing between both industries”
Francisco Paredes, from Altum Lab, said that “the UK aquaculture industry has many similarities to the Chilean market in terms of problems, requirements and the incorporation of innovative solutions to promote aquaculture sustainability. That is why we see great opportunities to enter the market to work together with the challenges of large and medium producers.”
