Fishery Buyers from Overseas Begin Biz Trip in Japan

Jiji Press

17:10 JST, December 4, 2023

Aomori (Jiji Press)—Fishery products buyers from the United States, Canada and Singapore started a business trip Monday to four northeastern Japan prefectures as the Japanese fishery industry has been hurt by China’s import ban.

The tour was organized by the Japan External Trade Organization to help Japanese fishery business operators find alternative buyers of their products.

The Chinese government has banned imports of Japanese fishery products in protest against the release of tritium-containing treated water into the ocean from the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan.

The buyers from six companies who are interested in scallops, yellowtail and sea urchin, viewed an auction at a wholesale market in the city of Aomori Monday morning.

Later, they checked the quality of bluefin tuna caught off Aomori Prefecture and held a meeting with a local fishery wholesaler.

U.S. fishery wholesaler CEO Yoshihiro Momose said that there is “little impact” from the treated water release but “Chinese people are reacting to it.”

“Customers in the United States want to buy (Japanese fishery products) if it helps. We want to make proposals to help them sold more overseas,” Momose said.

The buyers will visit fish markets and fishery business operators in Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures on Tuesday and later.