Back in 2011, AquaChile launched Verlasso to create a new way of thinking about aquaculture, with the goal of raising salmon in a more sustainable and environmentally friendly way, in the cold, clean, nutrient-rich waters of the Humboldt Current off the southern coast of Patagonia in Chile’s Region XII. And this year, in 2021, Verlasso celebrates a decade delivering the best salmon to the world!
In our 10 years of operation, we have harvested more than 5 million individual salmon.
Here are a few highlights from Verlasso’s first 10 years:
● In 2013, we were proud to become the very first farmed Atlantic salmon (our farms are in the Pacific, but the species of salmon we raise originated in the Atlantic) to be named a “Good Alternative” by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program.
● We also maintain a four-star Best Aquaculture Practices certification. The BAP program is the world’s most trusted, comprehensive, and proven third-party aquaculture certification program, with continuously improved global performance standards addressing environmental responsibility, social responsibility, food safety, animal welfare and traceability.
● In addition to being BAP certified, we also harvest all fish from Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC)-certified sites. This means you can enjoy Verlasso knowing that you are choosing a salmon that was raised in an environmentally, socially, and economically responsible way.
● And we are certified for sustainable aquaculture practices by Det Norske Veritas, an independent organization based in Norway that’s dedicated to safeguarding the environment.
● We have been served at Disneyland AND Disney World. Verlasso has been on the menu at Disneyland’s California Food & Wine Festival for years, and we’re a preferred supplier to Disney World in Florida. That means that when the NBA created its “bubble” at Disney World for the 2020 season, Verlasso was on the menu for the players, coaches, and officials. (You too can eat like a basketball star with this recipe for Kevin Durant’s go-to salmon Caesar salad!)
● Speaking of pro athletes, we’ve also worked with Taste of the NFL to raise money for the Kick Hunger Challenge in partnership with retailers around the country. Verlasso was on the menu at the celebrity-packed Taste of the NFL party the night before Super Bowl LII.
● It’s not just the NBA; when chefs are in high-pressure situations anywhere, they know to turn to Verlasso. In November, executive chef Jim Berman of Chase Center on the Riverfront in Wilmington, Del., chose Verlasso to feed President-Elect Joe Biden, VP-Elect Kamala Harris and the dozens of staff, Secret Service and others at their Election Night headquarters—and kept cooking it as the close race turned Election Night into Election Week.
● We’ve collaborated with all sorts of celebrity chefs! In 2017, we celebrated National Seafood Month with passionate sustainable seafood advocate Barton Seaver. Mexican-food legend Rick Bayless featured Verlasso salmon in a spicy aguachile at the 2019 Aspen Food & Wine Classic. And we produced a series of short films about our salmon farming operations with chef, TV host and food expert Andrew Zimmern.
● We even turned one of the greatest surfers in the world from a farmed-fish hater to a farmed-fish lover. Surfer/photographer/filmmaker Eric Wolfinger captured Jamie Mitchell’s visit to Chile and our farms in Journey of a Waterman.
“Verlasso was born as an Atlantic salmon brand with unique characteristics for the North American market. This ultra-premium salmon has become one of the favorites for chefs and consumers thanks to its flavor, and for being a sustainable, healthy product, rich in omega-3,” says Vicente de la Cruz, commercial director for AquaChile.
Happy New Year! All our team in AquaChile is wishing you a 2021 that’s just like Verlasso salmon: healthy, flavorful and rich in omega-3 fatty acids.