Koichi Sunaga at Yahoo Japan Corp. believes information technology will help turn the tide for Ishinomaki’s struggling fisheries.
The Internet service firm will open an office in the city on July 30 to develop an “IT fishery,” an online market for the region’s fish and seafood.
The region in and around Ishinomaki, in Miyagi Prefecture, is one of the world’s richest areas in the variety of fish species and amount of catches. Before last year's earthquake and tsunami, the factories of several large fish and seafood companies operated around the city, generating total annual sales of several hundred million yen (one hundred million yen equals roughly USD 1.28 million).
By comparison, an online market to sell local specialties would bring in just several million yen.
“I was afraid that nobody would take it seriously,” Sunaga said.
