Britain is in the midst of a burger boom. We’re not talking about the fast food offerings that were popular long before the arrival of the first McDonald’s in London in 1974; it’s the premium or “gourmet” burger that’s wowing Brits this summer and the marketplace has become congested as a result with an abundance of restaurant launches, both homegrown and from overseas.
But before burgers became uber-trendy, sushi was by far the country’s most fashionable eating experience; the Japanese delicacy even came close to toppling sandwiches as the nation’s favorite lunchtime snack purchase.
When the sector was last evaluated by the U.K. Seafish Authority in 2008, total sushi sales had a value of GBP 38.9 million (USD 60.3 million, EUR 45.1 million) and had grown 21 percent year-on-year. It’s fair to assume it has followed a double-digit growth trend in the five years since, which, even conservatively speaking, would put current sushi sales at between GBP 50 million (USD 77.5 million, EUR 58 million) and GBP 60 million (USD 93 million, EUR 69.6 million) annually.
Within the United Kingdom, London has the largest sushi market share with about 40 percent due to the fact there are more Japanese restaurants, bars and caterers in the capital than anywhere else.
Recognizing the potential that still exists in the market, the London-based independent seafood wholesaler James Knight of Mayfair this month finalized a merger with Aberdeen Sea Products, a specialist sashimi wholesaler that supplies some of London’s most popular Japanese restaurants, including Kurumaya, Miyako, Soho Japan and Tsuru.
Paschal Tiernan, managing director of James Knight, explained that the Japanese market in London is highly fragmented with more than 450 restaurants spread across the city. The deal with Aberdeen Sea Products will therefore help the new partnership to “meet the growing demand for healthy, authentic sushi and sashimi” and also enable it to diversify its client base.
“Japanese cuisine in London is currently going through a very interesting phase, with a new generation of more casual dining options emerging alongside the more traditional market,” said Tiernan. “There will always be demand for high-end, traditional cuisine, but challenging these conventions is what makes London the most diverse dining destination in the world.”
According to Matthew Anglin, managing director of Aberdeen Sea Products, the merger will allow his business to call on James Knight’s expertise in responsible sourcing, because “Japanese cuisine is particularly difficult to address from a sustainability point of view.”
In 2012 to 2013, 78 percent of James Knight’s sales were fish rated 1 to 3 by the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) and the company said it’s determined to increase this number further.
Japanese cuisine requires firm fish and as a result, tuna and salmon remain the most popular species with Japanese chefs, followed by seabass, shrimp and kingfish. Together the companies are sourcing yellowfin tuna and kingfish from the Indian Ocean; their salmon is farmed and sourced from both Scotland and Norway; their shrimp are farmed in India; and their wild seabass are caught in Cornwall, U.K., and their farmed seabass is sourced from Turkey.
“We do not and will not import any fish direct from Japan, such as hamachi, shad or freshwater eel; these are ‘fish to avoid,’ according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium,” said Tiernan. “There are a disproportionately high number of Japanese restaurants at the bottom of the Fish2Fork rankings, and there is absolutely no excuse for it. One of our aims is to work alongside the sector, giving them better access to sustainability expertise and sustainable species options.”
He points out there are significant differences in the level of preparation required for delicate Japanese cuisine. His fishmongers, for instance, will prepare circa 45 kilogram per hour for a typical restaurant, compared with circa 15 kilogram per hour for a Japanese restaurant.
“The level of preparation has to be meticulous, new gloves worn to prepare each fish, each individual fillet has to be separated by greaseproof when packed and so on. But it’s this discipline and attention to detail that is required by this particular sector of the seafood market,” said Tiernan.
