Over a year ago Alejandro Tola Alvarez left one challenging job for GenoMar in the Philippines, in order to take on another, even more challenging job in the GenoMar group. Alejandro was the Chief Operating Manager in the Philippines for two years. In his first year the production increased with 66%.
When we catch up with Alejandro (Alex) he is busy transferring fish from the lake to the processing plant. When processing manager Finn Hentze and his team take over, they show thumbs up for the quality and size of the fish. Alex is the Chief Operating Officer for Trapia, responsible for the hatchery, nursery and grow-out (to mention some) and of course to make sure the team working with him is functioning well. A year ago to date, marks the anniversary of the first egg collection for Trapia- and the result; plenty of round, healthy trapia for processing. The final result is a mild-flavoured traceable fillet ready to be shipped around the world for consumption.
Alex was born in Spain some thirty years ago. With continuous studies of music in a part of Spain we can call, not exaggerating, a cradle of the country’s cultural heritage he has a deep-rooted sense of culture. He grew up and studied in the North-western part of Spain, in cities like Vigo and Santiago de Compostela. In addition Alex has a keen interest for food, tasty food, also well rooted, we can safely say, in his upbringing.
Is it then a surprise that Alex chooses to become a veterinarian and then to specialise in aquaculture? Well, not really. Alex is true to his background, fine-tuned, thorough and with a keen eye for detail- a description of a musician, but also of an aquaculture specialist. His passion for life has been translated into his work and his compassionate personality works well for both workers and fish.
‘I believe in this project’ Alex states. ‘ I get to work in varied environments with people with different cultural backgrounds. The job challenges me on many levels as a veterinarian and as a visionary. It challenges my organisational and planning skills, and my capacity to connect with the people around me; to motivate them to do a good job. The training enables all the employees to fit into the team and become invaluable team members. It is always challenging, but fun because everyday we evolve, almost every day’, says a calm and collected, but still, enthusiastic Chief Operating Officer Alejandro Tola Alvarez.
For Trapia Alex is a key player. His passion and compassion for the fish and people in the company is a proof of quality. His interest in animal welfare combined with his taste for quality food, assures us that when he is happy, we are delivering top quality food. In addition, Alex has experience from Norway and Scotland. He has an understanding for the Norwegian way of thinking. Alex was trained at leading, modern hatchery facilities up north. He has used this experience for his and GenoMar’s advantage and adapted it to facilities in Asia through creative thinking and by never giving up. His thinking is truly sustainable, and in Trapia he has made sustainability work in practice. The GenoMar group is proud to have someone like Alex as one of the key managers.
For information about grow-out follow this link....