Status and trends on the use of small pelagic fish species in Chile 321
The sale price of jack mackerel that was destined for freezing and canning during
2005 was US$473.00/tonne and US$1 059.90/tonne, respectively (BCC, 2006). If the
volume of jack mackerel intended for fishmeal production were used instead for frozen
fish (with a yield of 0.71 tonne frozen per 1tonne fresh fish), 491 thousand tonnes of
frozen jack mackerel with an approximate value of US$302 760 667 could be produced.
Bearing in mind that Region VIII has around 44 processing plants with the capacity
to process 161 thousand tonnes of frozen products, it can assumed that at least triple
the number of plants would be needed and consequently, the demand for labour could
grow in the same proportion (scenario 1).
In the same way, if the volume of jack mackerel destined for reduction were used
for canned fish (scenario 2)., with a yield of 0.33 tonne of canned per tonne of fresh
jack mackerel, around 235 thousand tonnes of canned products with a value of US$248
930 658 could be produced, and the waste residue (head, tail, entrails) could be used to
produce 110 thousand tonnes of “standard fishmeal” with a value of US$87 756 715.
At the moment, Region VIII has 14 processing plants producing 94 thousand tonnes
of canned jack mackerel. To process all jack mackerel in canned form would require
double the number of plants and labour force.
In the first scenario, the total income derived from jack mackerel processed
products shows an increase of 46 percent in relation to the income currently derived
from fishmeal production. In second scenario, the revenue earned by jack mackerel
processed products increased by 89.6 percent, while in the third scenario, the increase
is 44 percent. Regarding the volumes of processed products, the first, second and
third scenarios show increases of 48.5 percent, 15 percent and 82 percent, respectively.
Hence, the highest demand for labour for the production of processed jack mackerel
would occur in the first and third scenarios.
Although Chile is a country with a long coastline, there is a limited tradition of
seafood consumption. Per capita consumption in the country is not higher than 7 kg/
year; therefore, an increase in jack mackerel production aimed for human consumption
would have a limited impact on the per capita consumption. Changing the destination
of jack mackerel from reduction to processing for human consumption could have a
greater impact in the export sector of Chilean fishery products. Chile has a free-market
economy that bases its development on the economic diversification of products for
export; hence, the benefits from a change in production strategy will mainly accrue to
this sector of economic activity. Indirectly, this would result in an increased demand for
workers in the canning and frozen fish sectors, assuming that the demand for labour
tripled in the processing plants (rising from 7 000 to 21 000 persons) and the level of
unemployment declined by 1.9 percent in Region VIII (from 9.6 to 7.7 percent) (INE,
2005).
If jack mackerel landings in Region VIII were reserved exclusively for processed
products (frozen and canned products, and surimi, etc.), the result would be a reduction
in total Chilean fishmeal production of 176 thousand tonnes (21 percent). The impact
on national salmon aquaculture would be limited, as nowadays fishmeal inclusion
levels in salmon aquafeeds are around 30 percent, which generates a demand for little
more than 30 percent of the national fishmeal production. However, in Chile, all the
fish oil produced in the country is used domestically, so a reduction of 21 percent in
fishmeal production would result in a reduction in fish oil production of 7.73 thousand
tonnes.
At present, the average inclusion of fishmeal in the aquafeeds is around 30 percent,
and the average conversion factor of the salmon aquaculture industry is 1.35, meaning
that for each tonne of salmon produced, 1 350 kg of feed is consumed and implies that
to produce this amount of feed, it is necessary to incorporate 405 kg of fishmeal. To
produce 405 kg of fishmeal, 1 687 kg of jack mackerel are required; hence, if only the
net weights are considered, only 1.7 kg of jack mackerel are needed to produce 1 kg
of salmon.