Chris Loew

A project funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is working to create a traceability tool using blockchain to track the movement of octopus through the seafood value-chain.

Field researchers for the project were posted in Campeche and Yucatan in Mexico and the U.S. states of California and Alaska in December 2021 to gather octopus environmental DNA (eDNA) for molecular analysis. The eDNA will be used to create a database, and if

Japan’s top tuna of the New Year fetched a relatively low price this year amid continuing concerns about COVID-19.

The best bluefin tuna sold at the first tuna auction of the year at Japan’s Toyosu (and previously, at the Tsukiji) wholesale market is usually the object of a bidding war. The high price is a plug for the prestige of the product, and earns bragging rights and name-recognition for the successful bidder.

The price saw a

The November 2021 consumer price index for Japan showed price increases on both fresh and shelf-stable seafood compared to last year, outpacing general price hikes.

The Statistics Bureau of Japan released the November 2021 pricing information on 24 December, showing that prices rose 0.6 percent overall from the same period last year, and 0.3 percent from October 2021, on a seasonally adjusted basis. Most of that overall price hike was in energy,

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