The Food Service 2025 fair took place from September 30 to October 2 at Espacio Riesco, where it brings together twelve representatives of small-scale artisanal fishing and aquaculture from Coquimbo, O'Higgins, Biobío, La Araucanía and Los Lagos.
Oyster preserves with merkén; snacks, cochayuyo jams and other ready-to-cook or serve superfood formats; various smoked products such as choritos, cholgas and piure, as well as clams, octopus and ulte in cans, are some of the Chilean initiatives created by fishermen, artisanal fishers and small-scale aquaculturists who surprised this year in the International Food Service Fair 2025, the most important food industry event in the country and Latin America which took place until October 2nd at Espacio Riesco, Metropolitan Region.
With the support of the National Institute for the Sustainable Development of Artisanal Fisheries and Small-Scale Aquaculture (INDESPA), 12 producers and producer women from the artisanal and small-scale aquaculture sector in the regions of Coquimbo, O'Higgins, Biobío, La Araucanía and Los Lagos, will arrive at this event to present their innovative seafood products in ready-to-serve or cook formats and before a specialized audience with whom they hope to generate new commercial alliances to take their products to larger and more competitive markets.
The national director of INDESPA, Leonardo Llanos Huerta, stated that participating in such important events as Food Service "is a great opportunity to bring closer and get to know the variety of our marine pantry with added value and products made in Chile in formats that facilitate their consumption, developed by local representatives of artisanal fishing and small-scale aquaculture whom we are supporting at this event to help them expand their networks and achieve strategic alliances" to get their products to new markets.
The INDESPA pavilion presents various products, among them a new format of oyster preserves in merkén made in Tongoy, which transforms low grade oysters into a gourmet product that may be of lesser commercial interest due to their size. There are also snacks and seaweed jams such as cochayuyo, clams, chilgos and piure smoked; octopus and squid in preserves, as well as trout. "(This space) has given me the opportunity" to attract customers, I find it great that INDESPA contributes to this type of events, to try to take our products forward,” he said. Germán Zamorano, piccicultor of the commune of Nacimiento in the Biobio region and part of the exhibiting group.
Like him, Ximena Cárcamo de la Cooperativa Pesquera Flor del Mar de La Pampina, from the region of Los Lagos, said it is “a good experience because we have already made enough contacts, people have asked enough and some already with intentions of buying and of making shipments from our Cooperative to other regions, such as Antofagasta or Easter Island that have surprised me,” he said.
The projects selected were part of the competitive line Markets of the Sea promoted by INDESPA nationwide with applicants from all over the country. As part of this support, the selected ones access a booth, the financing of transfers and stay, and technical assistance and training focused on sales and marketing to get the most commercial benefit from this event that in its edition number 13 has as country invited to Italy and will bring together exhibitors from more than 20 countries.
