Three companies specializing in seafood snacks exhibited at the Foodex trade show at Makuhari Messe in Chiba Prefecture, near Tokyo, from 2 to 5 March.
Foodex is held annually, with approximately 2,400 exhibitors from nearly 60 countries. Last year’s show had about 78,000 visitors, while this year’s had fewer, 73,556 over the four-day event.
A Korean company, Gangneung City-based Shin Han Sung Food, offers simple roasted squid: whole, sliced or legs (tentacles) only. Dried squid is a popular accompaniment to beer in Japan and Korea. The company also offer half-dried squid so buyers can roast and shred it freshly. The roaster is akin to a large flat waffle-maker, and the shredder resembles an office paper shredder. Half-dried squid is much moister and more flavorful than the fully dried version available in packages throughout Japan, though presumably the shelf life is shorter. The company has acquired both ISO 9001:2000b Quality Certification and HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points) certification.
Osaka-based Maruesu Corp. displayed an exhaustive line of dried seafood snacks that covered an entire wall behind their exhibit space. Their products, sold in retail packs, include squid in various styles, small roasted horse mackerel, flying fish, scallop strings and seaweed. Combining cheese with squid strips is popular. In their Gold Series, moist products such as sauced oysters, scallops and shredded squid are offered. In the company’s Tabikiri (Eat it up) Series, cheese, mayonnaise, wasabi and jabanero pepper flavors are available.
Hiramatsu Seafoods Co. produces tsukudani, seafood simmered in soy sauce and mirin (sweet rice wine). The word name originates from Tsukudajima, the island where it was first made in the Edo period (1603 to 1868). Traditionally made tsukudani resists spoilage due to high osmotic pressure and makes a handy storable side dish.
The company, based in Toyohashi, Aichi Prefecture, processes many kinds of small fish: sardines, herring, Pacific saury, ayu sweetfish, smelt and sand eel. The company has joined trade fairs in Taiwan and China and started sales at major convenience stores in Japan, focusing on cultivating new customers and introducing new products.
Hiramatsu Seafoods’ Sanma Kabayaki (broiled saury) and Iwashi Kanro-ni (sardines boiled in sweet syrup) received Gold Awards from the Monde Selection quality judging organization in Belgium. However, overseas distribution is still mainly aimed at Japanese restaurants in major U.S. cities and Asia. The company is trying to break into the mainstream by pairing tsukudani with Western foods, such as chips and salsa, or bread, though it also offered samples of sardines atop a slice of daikon radish.
In the U.S. pavilion, the Intertribal Agriculture Council had a booth offering products of many tribes. Nature’s Catch Smoked Salmon Jerky was sampled in teriyaki flavor and original, which has just salt, sugar and alder smoke. The product is smoked using real alder wood, while other products use artificial smoke flavor. Furthermore, the portions are from wild salmon fillets, while other products use trimmings and byproducts. The combination of fresh wild salmon and traditional methods of preparation equates to an authentic, natural, healthy snack, according to Nature’s Catch.
Salmon jerky may be a good match for Japan, as both smoked salmon and beef jerky are already popular treats for Japanese visiting the Seattle area. The jerky was exhibited in cooperation with the Intertribal Agriculture Council and was carried out by Lummi-owned Raven Seafood. The Lummi have a reservation in northwest Washington state.
Processing is done by Boundary Fish Co. of Blaine, Wash., and the chum salmon used comes from Alaska and Lummi fishermen, along with other Pacific Northwest fishermen. Though the Lummi tribe has a rich tradition of fishing, the factory is not Indian-owned, according to Mike Shellenberger, president of Raven.
Boundary is run by Hiroaki “Henry” Yuki, a Japanese immigrant. Shellenberger said that the Lummi input is the preparation style and the marketing, as well as employing tribe members at the processing plant. Boundary’s goal is to work closely with the local community while being a sustainable, eco-friendly company.
