Trout and salmon vendors trying to carve out a niche – No one can beat Chile on price, but a great many vendors are trying to differentiate their product.
Houn Aquaculture, based in Dover, Tasmania, Australia is an annual fixture at the show, and was promoting its farmed king salmon.
Wako Ltd. was offering huge triploid rainbow trout. A triploid fish contains an extra set of chromosomes, and is therefore sterile, though it is not a GMO—the genes are unchanged, but there is an extra set. The downside of this technique is high juvenile mortality. The fish are produced in freshwater and are low in fat, giving a lighter flavor than sea-raised trout. Company president Ryo Nonabe said he is aiming the product at special fair menus at upscale supermarkets and kaiten (conveyor belt) sushi shops. Production volume is only 20 metric tons per year. Product forms are gift packs and fillets (both frozen), and whole (chilled).
A native fish, the Biwa trout (Oncorhynchus rhodurus) – actually a landlocked salmon closely related to the cherry salmon (Oncorhynchus masou) – was offered by the Nagahama City fisheries cooperative. Biwa trout, like cherry salmon, has a lighter pinker flesh that a silver or Atlantic salmon. It is mainly marketed as a local specialty to Japanese inns in the Nagahama area.
And finally, Hokusai-ya Ltd. was promoting their “Kaikyo” brand of ocean-farmed trout. The farming project was started in 1989 by seven local fishermen concerned about the future of the local wild fishery. Due to low market prices, they have switched to direct sales via the internet, promoting the image of the rough seas of the Tsugaru straight and the fisherman-to-customer direct connection.
They have also developed gift packs of salmon prosciutto (like a drier form of lox) and salmon marinade. They additionally displayed whole silver and cherry salmon.
