Puerto Montt, Chile. Benchmark Holdings plc is preparing to participate in AquaSur 2024, one of the main meeting points of the aquaculture industry that takes place every two years in Chile and that, on this occasion, will take place between March 19 and 21 in Puerto Montt (Los Lagos region). The company will be present with the two business areas currently operating in the country: Benchmark Genetics, a leading supplier of genetics for aquaculture present in the most relevant markets around the world, and Benchmark Animal Health, a globally recognized pharmaceutical laboratory with extensive experience in the supply of medicines against sea lice and water purification treatment systems. As for Benchmark Genetics, its executives will be showcasing the company’s latest advances in Atlantic salmon genetics. “We are very anxious to participate again in AquaSur and to be able to show the advances we have made in the production of salmon eggs in Chile. For the past three years, we have been producing robust eggs that have shown excellent performance in both freshwater and seawater. We are also operating under the highest sanitary standards, which has been endorsed by the Disease-Free Sanitary Compartment Certification that we received from Sernapesca in May 2023”, explains Berta Contreras, general manager of Benchmark Genetics Chile. The executive adds that AquaSur will continue to promote the concept of “effective genetics”, understood as that which comes from a quality ova and which, therefore, delivers the expected productive behavior to deal with a specific problem. “In this area, Benchmark Genetics Chile develops an important work together with customers, defining, from the beginning, the objectives of the ova and the productive challenges it will face. Likewise, once the ova is planted in the production centers, we continue to carry out a complete follow-up, in order to observe the results. Customers can even access a complete bio-economic access a complete bio-economic analysis, which transforms data into information that is very relevant for producers to make better decisions,” he explains. Benchmark Animal Health, recognized in the international salmon farming industry for its product Salmosan® Vet, and in Chile for its product Purisan® to combat sea lice, will present its latest innovation in this field. This is Ectosan® Vet, launched in Norway in 2021, being the first veterinary treatment against sea lice introduced in the Norwegian salmon market in more than a decade. It is currently under evaluation for possible introduction in Chilean salmon farming.This product is used in conjunction with CleanTreat®, a purification system that eliminates the drug used, releasing the drug-free post-treatment water into the sea, reducing environmental risk and offering producers a new generation of therapies with greater sustainability. Javier Moya, general manager of Benchmark Animal Health Chile, comments that “Ectosan® Vet represents a new generation in the concept of pharmacological treatments against sea lice. In addition to having an efficacy of over 99% on sea lice in pre-adult and adult stages, it is applied in conjunction with the CleanTreat® system, which purifies the water used during treatment. CleanTreat®, in addition to eliminating the drug, removes organic matter from the treatment water, including sea lice and egg sacs, further minimizing the possible development of resistance, as has been observed in Norway”. He adds that “it has now been two years since Ectosan® Vet and the CleanTreat® system were approved for use in Norway, proving to be a highly effective solution against sea lice with no impact on the environment. In fact, it has received a score of 0 on the Weighted Number of Medicinal Treatments (WNMT) score from ASC certification, which recognizes its environmental friendliness. We are working very enthusiastically with colleagues in Europe so that Chilean producers can have this effective tool against sea lice in their toolbox. During AquaSur 2024, we will have at our stand the possibility to show in detail this solution against Caligus and exchange experiences with foreign colleagues who work in the field with Ectosan® Vet and the CleanTreat® system”.Those who wish to learn about Benchmark’s proposals for the Chilean salmon farming market, as well as for the production of other species in the region, can visit stand C-28. For further press information, please contact: Austral Comunicaciones | 9 99912823/ 9 98850113 Ximena García | xgarciac@australcomunicaciones.cl Sandra Ulloa | sulloab@australcomunicaciones.cl