Chris Loew

Portland, Oregon, U.S.A.-based nonprofit Ocean Outcomes (O2) has received new funding for its work on tuna sustainability in Northeast Asia, and has added a new member to its international team.

The new funding is a USD 1.9 million (EUR 1.68 million) grant from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation dispersed over three years, which follows on from a 2016 grant from the foundation for USD 571,388 (EUR 506,003). Other major sources of funding for

Yumigahama Fisheries Co., a subsidiary of Tokyo -based Nippon Suisan Kaisha (Nissui), has harvested the first chub mackerel from its land-based recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) facility in Sakaiminato City, Tottori Prefecture, Japan.

Chub mackerel (Scomber japonicas, called “masaba” in Japanese) is considered the best-tasting mackerel for sashimi, and as a result, is more expensive than striped or spotted mackerel.

The fish

Japan's Yaizu Fisheries Cooperative held a briefing on 6 December to explain the theft of frozen bonito – skipjack tuna – to local fishermen.

Yaizu, located near the entrance of Tokyo Bay, is the country’s top bonito port, recording nearly half of the country’s total landings.

In February, five people were arrested and charged with stealing about 4.4 metric tons of frozen bonito, worth JPY 1.04 million (USD 9,000,

Japan’s Fisheries Agency (JFA) announced in June its intention to boost farmed yellowtail production by over 70 percent – from under 140,000 metric tons (MT) currently, to 240,000 MT by the year 2030. However, a fingerling shortage will instead result in a short-term reduction.

Yellowtail fingerlings are typically sourced in the wild in Japan. Wild yellowtail fry (called mojako) are scooped into wellboats with handheld nets as they

Japan’s seafood exports rose by 9.4 percent in October 2021 year-over-year, while its seafood imports were up by 26.7 percent, resulting in a small trade deficit.

Japan’s government announced on Wednesday, 1 December the country is now on track to reach its target of JPY 1 trillion (USD 8.9 billion, EUR 7.8 billion) in total food exports in 2021, according to The Japan Times, including JPY 8.4 billion (USD 74.4 million, EUR 65.8

The 23rd Japan International Seafood and Technology Expo took place from 8 to 10 November, though Japan’s continuing quarantine requirements for entrants from many countries limited its international participation.

Foreign exhibitors were mostly limited to those that have a Japan representative office, or those whose embassy organized a national booth. The number of visitors was estimated at 15,000 – up from 9,426 in 2020, but far

The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), approved increases to the total allowable catch (TAC) of bluefin and bigeye at its annual meeting, which ended Tuesday, 23 November.

ICCAT is the regional fisheries management organization (RFMO) responsible for conservation of tunas and tuna-like species in the Atlantic Ocean and adjacent seas, including the Mediterranean. ICCAT fishery managers agreed to raise the

Japan is aiming to increase exports of yellowtail – the country’s largest finfish export by value – but the efforts to increase exports are coinciding with tightening competition from new aquaculture ventures abroad.

In 2019, yellowtail made up 9 percent of Japan’s fish and fishery product exports - third by value behind scallops and pearls. Primarily, Japan's yellowtail exports consist of frozen fillets, with a

Product from the second sea bream farming operation in Japan certified to the Aquaculture Stewardship Council standard will be on sale in Aeon stores, mainly in the Tokyo metropolis, from 19 to 22 November.

The supermarket chain has been a leader in Japan in featuring sustainable seafood and has plans to increase its certified seafood offerings from 15 percent to 20 percent of all its seafood products. As part of the company’s