Japan’s squid landings from January to September 2018 were 20 percent below the previous worst catch for the period. Landings at Hakodate, a center for squid jigging boats, decreased by 60 percent, while landings in Hachinohe in Aomori Prefecture decreased by 35 percent, according to a report by the Nippon Keizai Shimbun.
Last year’s total catch for the year, 53,000 metric tons (MT), was dismal in contrast to the relatively good haul of 2011, when fishermen hauled in over 200,000 MT of flying squid.
There are three reasons for this year’s lower landings. One is that thousands of North Korean fishing boats are fishing the edge of Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the Sea of Japan, and Japanese ships are refraining from fishing alongside them in order to avoid hostile encounters.
Another reason is that temperatures in squid breeding grounds in the East China Sea were lower than usual last year, leading to a lower survival rate.
And finally, high seawater temperatures in waters north of Hokkaido may be keeping squid there longer. This has been a trend in recent years, along with generally warmer ocean surface temperatures, delaying the migrations of other important species like Pacific saury as well. The squid will eventually move south to lay eggs in warmer waters, but the season may be delayed and the squid may spend more time outside of Japan’s EEZ, where foreign fleets can target them.
A more recent report from Japan’s Fishery Information Service’s covers the progress of fishing from August to mid-October in each area of the sea where squid migrate, mainly around Hokkaido and norther Honshu Island.
Landings of fresh squid at major ports in Miyagi Prefecture were 1,425.5 MT, lower than the previous year’s 2,546.3 MT, according to the report. Off Hokkaido, the total landings at the four ports of Tokachi, Kushiro, Akkeshi, and Hanasaki were 64.6 MT, exceeding the previous year’s 0.8 MT. In the Nemuro Strait and Sea of Okhotsk, the total landings at Rausu Port were 7.9 MT, lower than the previous year’s 14.2 MT. In the Tsugaru Strait and south on the Pacific side, the total landings at the ports of Ohata, Hakodate, and Urakawa were 453.2 MT, a little below the previous year’s 461.5 MT. In the Joban-Ii Sanriku Sea, which covers Aomori Prefecture (ports of Shiranukan, Narito, Misawa and Hachinohe), Iwate Prefecture (seven major ports), and Miyagi Prefecture (ports of Kesennuma, Ishinomaki, Onogawa and Shitsugawa), the total landings were 899.8 MT, lower than the previous year’s 2,069.8 MT.
The wholesale price of domestic flying squid at Tokyo’s new Toyosu market as of 8 November, 2018 ranged from a high of JPY 972 (USD 8.55, EUR 7.47) per kilogram to a low of JPY 605 (USD 5.32, EUR 4.65), with an average value of JPY 799 (USD 7.03, EUR 6.14). This is slightly down from the average of high price of the week of 2 to 8 November, which was JPY 1,080 (USD 9.50, EUR 8.30). And that weekly average was down JPY 220 (USD 1.94, EUR 1.69) from the week of 26 October to 1 November. However, this was about 20 percent higher than the same period last year. The average low price for this week was JPY 691 (USD 6.08, EUR 5.31), down from JPY 324 (USD 2.85, EUR 2.49) from last week.
Squid has long been considered a cheap seafood in Japan, so it is difficult to convince consumers to pay a higher price. Makers of processed squid snack products especially – popular with beer in Japan – will have a hard time passing on their higher costs.
Image courtesy of Hanky Department Store
