As a sponsor of the Latin American Animal Welfare Meeting (ELBA 2026), the industry promoted a discussion forum that brought together sector representatives to share experiences, advances and opportunities in this area.
The Salmon Council participated as a sponsor in ELBA 2026, an event that took place over two days at the Le Méridien Hotel in Santiago and brought together specialists, company representatives, academics, researchers and actors from different productive sectors to address the advances and challenges associated with animal welfare.
Within the framework of this participation, the Salmon Council led the "Producers' Panel of Salmon, a conversation aimed at sharing experiences and perspectives on the incorporation of animal welfare in productive management and on the contribution of science, innovation and collaborative work to continue raising the standards of Chilean salmon farming.
The session was moderated by Dr. Marcela Lara, technical advisor of the Salmon Council and representative of the CASA-OMSA Collaborating Centre. In representation of member companies of the sector, David Garrido, technical manager of Salmones Aysén and Alejandro Heisinger, health manager of AquaChile, participated. The panel also included the participation of Marcela Delgado, executive director of Sudvet Corp and Alin Ximena Casado, president of MEVEA.
During the conversation, the panelists addressed experiences related to fish welfare, productive management, health, monitoring and the incorporation of new technologies, along with the importance of generating knowledge and promoting continuous improvement based on evidence.
The programme of the aquaculture section of ELBA 2026 included, in addition, exhibitions on feeding, monitoring and fish behaviour, culture system design, innovative solutions, certifications and advances in international standards. These contents focused on analysing animal welfare from an integrated perspective, linked to fish health, sustainability and sustainable development.
"Animal welfare requires an integrated approach, built on evidence, productive experience and collaboration. Instances such as ELBA allow sharing of knowledge and highlighting the work being carried out to continue improving processes and high standards of Chilean salmon farming," said Dr. Marcela Lara, technical advisor of the Salmon Council.
This participation is part of the sustained work of the Salmon Council, strengthening spaces for exchange of knowledge and multi-sectoral collaboration between academia, science, industry and public agencies, with the purpose of advancing towards a more sustainable, responsible salmon farming and prepared to meet high global animal welfare standards.
