Over the last few days, the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (“Sernapesca”) has issued a series of resolutions -  Nº 565/2020, Nº 585/2020, Nº 614/2020 and Nº 648/2020 - oriented to adopt measures to reduce the risk of transmission of COVID-19 in salmon farming centers.

Recipients

Aquaculture companies, salmon farming centers and processing plants.

Measures

Sernapesca is authorized to adopt, after a prior technical analysis, a series of sanitary, environmental and operational measures necessary to assure a minimum exposition of Sernapesca personnel to COVID-19 and to avoid unnecessary movement of personnel working at salmon farming centers. Among these measures are the following:

• Postponing or overtaking the beginning of sanitary rest, extending or reducing the production period, upon request.
• Extend the term of permanence in the collection centers, upon request, indicating the number of days required to enter fish into process.
• Postponing and extending stocking periods.
• Extending the period set forth for cleaning and disinfecting the centers' structures, once the harvest has been carried out.
• Postpone the samplings for environmental reports (INFA) in centers where they cannot be carried out.

Furthermore, the resolutions contain a series of measures related to disease surveillance and control programs and to online documentation and notifications.

In the same line, the Superintendence of the Environment (“SMA”) activated a protocol to stimulate environmental compliance in the aquaculture industry. In the event of specific contingencies at hatcheries, farming centers, transfer stations or processing plants during the COVID-19 pandemic, the corresponding Contingency and/or Emergency Plans shall be activated.