Chile Sold 557,532 Tonnes of Salmon in 8 Months

Chile, the world’s second-largest salmon producer after Norway, shipped 557,532 tonnes of salmon and trout worth US $4.491 billion in the first eight months of 2026. That is 12% more volume and 6.97% more money than the same period in 2025, when 497,802 tonnes were shipped for $4.199 billion — according to Chile’s National Customs Service monthly Comex statistics report, as reported by Fish Farming Expert on 21 September 2026.

The headline is volume growth outrunning value growth. In plain terms, Chile sold a lot more fish, but earned slightly less for each kilo. That single gap — more tonnes, thinner unit returns — is the story Indian exporters, shrimp farmers and fisheries students should watch, because the same price-versus-volume squeeze is playing out across world seafood markets right now.

Note on the images in this post: the banners are illustrations created for this article, not photographs of Chilean farms or shipments.

Chile’s eight-month salmon scorecard at a glance

Indicator (Jan–Aug 2026)	Figure	Same period 2025	Change
Total salmonid exports (volume)	557,532 tonnes	497,802 tonnes	+12%
Total salmonid exports (value)	US $4.491 billion	US $4.199 billion	+6.97%
Implied average price (calculated from the two reported totals)	~$8.06 per kg	~$8.44 per kg	~4.5% lower
August 2026 alone (volume)	62,747 tonnes	—	+16.52% vs July 2026
August 2026 alone (value)	$525 million	—	+16.5% vs July 2026 ($450m)
First half 2026 (cross-check)	441,000 tonnes, $3.506 billion	382,000 tonnes, $3.266 billion	+15.5% volume, +7.3% value

The implied average price above is our own arithmetic from the reported totals ($4.491 billion ÷ 557,532 tonnes), not a figure published by Chilean Customs. It is included because it explains the headline: when volume rises 12% but value rises only 6.97%, the average realised price per kilo must have fallen — by about 4.5% on these totals. The source itself draws the same conclusion, noting the figures indicate “slightly lower achieved prices per kilo”.

The first-half cross-check also lines up neatly. First-half exports of 441,000 tonnes plus July (53,850 tonnes) and August (62,747 tonnes) add up to 557,597 tonnes — within 65 tonnes of the reported eight-month total of 557,532 tonnes, a rounding-level difference between two separate reports. That consistency is a good sign the two reports are describing the same trade flow, not two different ones.

Where the fish went: every big market grew except Russia

Fish Farming Expert’s market-by-market breakdown, drawn from the same Customs data, shows growth almost everywhere that matters — with one clear exception.

Destination (Jan–Aug 2026)	Volume	Value	Change vs Jan–Aug 2025
United States (largest market)	178,126 tonnes	$1.818 billion	+8.89% volume, +3.25% value
Brazil	112,150 tonnes	$681 million	+12.18% volume, +12.75% value
Japan (big coho market)	88,494 tonnes	$687 million	+8.69% volume, +7.68% value
China	29,757 tonnes	$176 million	+72.18% volume, +55.85% value
Russia	21,000 tonnes	$142 million	−30.96% volume, −35.84% value
Mexico	13,776 tonnes	$137 million	+13.2% volume, +7.44% value

Three things stand out in that table.

1. The United States bought more despite a tariff. US shipments rose 8.89% in volume to 178,126 tonnes even though Chilean salmon was subject to a 12.5% tariff surcharge imposed by the US administration — a levy that had risen from 10% and prompted Chile’s government and export sector to seek new exemptions. The US alone took about 32% of Chile’s eight-month salmonid volume (178,126 of 557,532 tonnes) and about 40% of its value. Growth in the biggest market, under a tariff, is the strongest single signal in the whole dataset.

2. China is the fastest-growing market, from a small base. Shipments to China jumped 72.18% in volume to 29,757 tonnes, though value rose more slowly (+55.85% to $176 million) — again, more tonnes at a lower average price. China is still only about 5% of Chile’s salmonid volume, so this is a growth story to watch rather than a pillar of current earnings. Separately, Chilean Customs figures reported in late October showed salmon exports to Brazil in the first half of 2026 at 85,945 tonnes worth $519 million (+14.7% volume, +9.7% value on H1 2025) — consistent with the eight-month Brazil total above.

3. Russia is the only market in retreat. Russian purchases fell nearly a third in volume and more than a third in value, from 30,417 tonnes ($222 million) in January–August 2025 to 21,000 tonnes ($142 million). The source gives no reason for the Russian decline, and this post claims none — it is reported here as a fact of the data, not explained.

August was the strongest month of the run

August 2026 shipments of 62,747 tonnes ($525 million) were up 16.52% in volume and 16.5% in value on July (53,850 tonnes, $450 million) — a rare month where volume and value rose in lockstep, meaning the average price held steady month-on-month even as volumes surged. For context, the eight-month average works out to about 69,700 tonnes a month, so August ran about 10% below that average pace in absolute terms but was still the best month-on-month improvement in the reported window.

That August bounce matters for the year-end question. If Chile holds roughly the January–August monthly average through September–December, the full-year total lands near 836,000 tonnes — but this post does not present that as a forecast. No official full-year target or forecast appears in the source, so none is claimed here. What can be said is narrower and safer: the eight-month pace already exceeds the whole of some earlier years’ salmonid trade, and the August acceleration gives exporters momentum into the final quarter.

What to watch next: two risks that arrived after August

The January–August data end before two October developments that could shape the final quarter — and both are worth tracking, clearly labelled here as later news, not part of the eight-month statistics.

Brazil’s tax treatment: Reporting on 26 October 2026 said salmon has been excluded from Brazil’s basket of basic foods eligible for zero-rated VAT under the country’s new tax system, leaving it potentially subject to a standard rate estimated at approximately 26.5%. Brazil is Chile’s second-largest salmonid market by volume in this dataset (112,150 tonnes), so any VAT change there could weaken salmon against other animal proteins. Industry bodies SalmonChile and the Consejo del Salmón have been lobbying for a change in that treatment.
Brazil’s sanitary audit: Brazilian agricultural officials completed an extensive audit of Chile’s salmon production and export controls by 30 October 2026, inspecting farms, hatcheries, processing plants and laboratories. Findings are expected within 60 days. Chile’s regulator, Sernapesca, said the audit is a periodic importing-country check, not a signal that Brazil is considering import restrictions.

Neither development changes the January–August numbers. Both could change the fourth-quarter numbers, which is why they belong in a statistics post: a data story is only useful if readers know which way the next data point might move.

What this means for India

Chile is not a competitor India can ignore, and it is not a model India can copy wholesale. Three practical takeaways:

Volume is not the same as value. Chile grew shipments 12% and earnings only 7%. Indian shrimp exporters facing the same global price pressure should read that gap carefully: chasing tonnage at falling unit prices protects market share but not margins. The question for any Indian exporter is the same one Chile’s data poses — at what price was the extra volume sold?
Diversification cushions tariffs. Chile grew US volumes under a 12.5% surcharge while simultaneously growing Brazil, Japan, China and Mexico. A single-market exporter has no such cushion. India’s seafood export strategy — which already spans the US, China, the EU, Japan and Southeast Asia — follows the same logic, and Chile’s 2026 numbers are fresh evidence it works.
Coho and trout matter, not just Atlantic salmon. Japan’s demand is specifically noted as a big market for coho salmon, and the headline totals cover salmon and trout together. For Indian aquaculture students and farmers, the lesson is that species diversification — not one flagship species — is what fills a national export basket.

How to read these numbers (and what they do not say)

A statistics post should say what its numbers cannot prove. These Customs figures count exports shipped, not fish farmed: they say nothing about Chile’s 2026 production, farm-gate prices, mortality, or feed costs. They do not break out Atlantic salmon versus coho versus trout, so no species-level claim is made here. And they are reported totals, not audited accounts — the source is Chile’s National Customs Service via its Comex report, which is the strongest available public source for this trade, but readers checking the original should look for the Comex monthly release rather than any single news summary.

For readers who want to compare: Norway’s salmon exports are covered in our earlier statistics post, Vietnam’s nine-month fisheries scorecard is covered separately, and Morocco’s coastal landings give a capture-fisheries contrast to Chile’s farmed-salmon story. Links to all three are below.

Frequently asked questions

How much salmon did Chile export in January–August 2026?
557,532 tonnes of salmon and trout, worth US $4.491 billion, according to Chilean Customs Comex data reported on 21 September 2026.

Was that more than in 2025?
Yes: 12% more volume and 6.97% more value than January–August 2025 (497,802 tonnes, $4.199 billion).

Which country bought the most Chilean salmon?
The United States: 178,126 tonnes worth $1.818 billion in the eight months — about a third of the volume and about 40% of the value.

Did Chilean salmon get cheaper?
On average, yes, slightly: dividing the reported totals gives about $8.06 per kg in 2026 against about $8.44 per kg in 2025, roughly 4.5% lower. The source itself notes slightly lower achieved prices per kilo.

Is Chile the world’s biggest salmon exporter?
No. Chile is the world’s second-largest salmon producer after Norway, per industry reporting. Norway’s farmed-salmon export machine remains larger — see our Norway statistics post linked below.

Where can I check the original figures?
Chile’s National Customs Service monthly Comex statistics report, via the Studies Department of the National Customs Service, as reported by Fish Farming Expert (21 September 2026). The market tables in this post are taken from that report.