On 3 December 2024, ICARS, the Ministry of Health, and the Ministry of Economy, Development and Tourism of Chile signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to collaboratively address the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
The MOU, marks the establishment of a partnership to mitigate antimicrobial use and resistance in Chile, using a One Health approach. In addition, Chile has joined ICARS as its thirteenth Mission Partner. Mission partners declare their support to ICARS’ vision and mission and commit to promoting the AMR agenda at national and regional levels.
The partnership follows a productive exchange between ICARS and a range of national stakeholders to co-develop a project aimed at reducing the use of antimicrobials in Chilean salmon farming. In May 2023, Senior Consultant, Anders Dalsgaard and Senior Science Advisor, Kristina Osbjer travelled to Chile to meet with project teams and the Ministry of Health, scope the project sites, and host a stakeholder workshop to discuss and define the intervention, and determine the local actors to engage moving forward.
Since 2017 Chile has implemented a One Health based National Action Plan (NAP) against Antimicrobial Resistance which is formulated as an intersectoral national plan that requires inter-ministerial commitments. The second version of the NAP, which was released in 2021, is a strategic plan with guidelines and goals by year and includes a wide range of activities across sectors to combat AMR.
In 2022, salmon and trout were the third most important products for export from Chile. The Chilean salmon farming industry does, however, use more antibiotics than other major salmon producing countries. The National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (Sernapesca) oversees sanitary programmes and resolutions within aquaculture and is monitoring the use of pharmaceutical products with regular data collected on antibiotic use (AMU) and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) on farms. The Government is striving for a prudent and responsible use of antimicrobials with the aim of preserving animal health, the environment and human health, taking a One Health approach.
Addressing AMR in Chilean Salmon Farms
A new project, launched in November 2024, aims to prevent AMR by reducing antimicrobial use (AMU) in Chilean Atlantic salmon aquaculture by 25%. The overall objective is to design and implement a Surveillance, Alert, and Response System (SVARS), using various sources of information, and provide a catalogue of voluntary and mandatory measures and interventions to be implemented by high usage farms to reduce their AMU. The project led by the Ministry of Economy, Development and Tourism, and Universidad de Chile, strives to improve practices and science-based governance of antimicrobial use in the salmon farming sector.
Speaking on the announced partnership, National Director of Sernapesca, Soledad Tapia Almonacid, said:
“The signing of this Memorandum of Understanding with the International Centre for Antimicrobial Resistance Solutions (ICARS), a prestigious Danish institution that stands out for its work in the search for scientific and collaborative solutions to address the global challenge of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), is very important…we will work with leading national educational institutions seeking to establish science-based measures to significantly reducing the use of antimicrobials in the salmon farming industry to establish better practices.”
Progress to date
The project team was involved in the organisation of the first Antibiotic in Aquaculture Congress which was held in Chile in November 2024, providing a forum for the team to present their project plans. We look forward to giving updates on their activities, as they continue implementation of this important project.
