Interesting Facts!! #27

27. The Japanese Fishing Industry

Fish, Fish , Fish and more FISH! Japan is the land of fish...I'm just joking but there is a large selection of fish on the islands of Japan. As I said Islands meaning it is surrounded by a large mass of water full of fish. Japan is one of the world's largest consumers of marine products. It is the largest fish-eating nation in the world, consuming 7.5 billion tons of fish a year, or about 10 percent of the world's catch. This is the equivalent of 30 kilograms a year per person. The total aquaculture production in 2003 was estimated at 1,301,437 tonnes, worth $4,199 million, which corresponds to 22 percent of total national fisheries production and 31 percent of the total value produced in Japan. Marine aquaculture accounts for 96 percent of total aquaculture production and 90 percent of the total value produced. Japan is home to a $14 billion commercial fishing industry. Fish and a variety of other sea creatures are caught by local fishermen. 

There are more than 60 species included in the annual fisheries statistics. Of these, the main species are Nori (27 percent of total aquaculture production, and 18 percent of the value produced), yesso scallop (20 and 7 percent), oyster (17 and 8 percent), Japanese amberjack (12 and 25 percent), red seabream (6 and 11 percent), and sea mustard (5 and 2 percent). The number of fishmongers in Tokyo declined 53 percent to 1,130 between 1980 and 2000.  Worried about supplies and high prices, the Japanese government is urging people to eat more locally-caught fish to reduce Japan’s dependency on imported fish and especially encouraging people to eat seasonal fishes such as bonito in the spring, squid and saury the autumn and yellowtail snapper in the summer---whose catches are usually abundant.

Japan and China are the largest fishing nations. By some measures China has surpassed Japan in recent years but most of the fish that the Chinese consume are freshwater fish raised in fish farms. The Japanese eat mostly sea fish.By other measures Japan is still the largest fishing nation. According to a National Geographic survey the largest harvesters of fish (metric tons) were: 1- Japan (7.5 million); 2- China (7 million); 3- Peru (6.7 million); 4- Chile (6.5 million); 5- Russia (5.2 million); 6- the U.S. (5 million). Still the Japanese fishing industry is on the decline. Japan caught 12.8 million tons of fish in 1984 but only 6.35 million tons in 2000 and 5.52 million tons in 2002. In 2000, it imported 3.54 million tons of fish, double what it imported in 1984.  Fish consumption dropped around 15 percent in the 1990s, largely because of the time and difficulty in preparing it. The number of fishmongers in Tokyo declined 53 percent to 1,130 between 1980 and 2000.

Over fishing is becoming a serious a problem in Japan. Areas recorded lower than usual catches. Over fishing in coastal areas have stopped catches and caused fishing villages to shrink to the edge of disappearance. Cod has been fished out in many places and salmon, saury, cuttlefish and crab are less than they used to be. Over fishing is becoming such a problem that fish that have been traditionally been regarded unwanted are now been given a second look and turned into various food products. For example, small lizardfish, small horse mackerel, young yellowtail, deep-sea fish, dorado, Japanese butterfish and small blue mackerel, which in the past were thrown out, are now being pressed into things like fish paste, fish sausages, skewered fish balls, and fish burgers. Lower catches have led to an overwhelming dependency on expensive fish farms and imports, driving up costs.

-The more you know~