ISARIBI NO.72

ISSN1346-2512

JapanFisheries
AssociationNO.72, JAN. 2012
Sankaido Bldg.,
9-13 Akasaka 1, Minato-ku,
Tokyo, Japan 107-0052
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http//www.suisankai.or.jp

Views and Opinions of Japan’s Fisheries Industry

Seafood Expo

JFA chief hopes Seafood Expo will contribute to restorationof fisheries in disaster areaIn an overview of the 13th Japan International Seafood & Technology Expo, held in Tokyo 27-29 July last year,
Toshiro Shirasu, president of the Japan Fisheries Association (JFA), the organizer of the show, stated: "We are
grateful that more than 25,000 people visited the show during the three-day period. The environment surrounding
Japan's fisheries have become extremely harsh due to the impact of the Great Japan Earthquake and Tsunami thatattacked the eastern and northern coasts of Japan on March 11, 2011.""This year the expo was held under the slogan: 'Let's support fisheries in Japan.' I am pleased to report to you we
had exhibitors from many sectors of the fisheries. Notably, we are proud to have had participation from regional andlocal autonomies and private companies in the disaster-hit area. From overseas, representatives from 14 countries
participated, who, along with their messages of support, presented various types of seafood and fishery materials aswell as valuable business proposals.""Under the present difficult circumstances, it was encouraging for us to have the occasion, through this Expo,
to exhibit excellent and attractive seafood from all over Japan and the world. I believe the show provided bothparticipants and visitors with a good opportunity to deepen their understanding of the seafood products, learn andgrow with each other, and utilize it as a valuable forum of business contacts. It is our sincere hope that this expo willcontribute to an early restoration of fisheries in the disaster area and the further development of fisheries in Japan,"
Shirasu said.

Highlights of the Expo-Opening with prayers for disaster victims
The 3-day Expo opened with silent prayers for thevictims of the great earthquake/tsunami, followed bypowerful call for the restoration of fisheries in Japan, led
by Mayor Sugawara of Kesennuma, a principal disasterfishing city.

-Disaster area assistance corner

The Japan Fisheries Association established a cornerto assist fishers in disaster area. Participants in thecorner included regional and local autonomies from thetsunami-hit region. Also, 12 private fishing companies
from the disaster area took part in the corner in thehope to demonstrate their well-being and their wish tohave interchange with as many buyers as possible.

ISARIBI: First published by the Japan Fisheries Association in October 1992.
JFA President: Toshiro Shirasu; Editor: Masashi Nishimura

ISARIBI NO.72

JAN. 2012-Presentation of sushi cooking techniqueWith full cooperation of the sushi federation,
presentation was made on ways to ensure safety
and security of seafood, through sushi. Sushi cooks
d e m o n s t ra t e d b e fo r e v i e w e r s t h e t e c h n i q u e s t ocook deliciously, using the raw materials provided byexhibitors. Furthermore, the test for International
Certificate of Knowledge on Sushi was conducted withthe aim to disseminate accurate knowledge in providing
authenthic sushi overseas.

-New organic seafood corner

The New Organic Seafood Corner, newly establishedthis year, attracted many visitors. In the corner, landbased aquaculture technologies from Japan and overseas
were presented, together with cultured fish. Also,
trading houses specializing in organic seafood exhibited.
In the seminar on land-based aquaculture, full 80 people
participated, showing a rising interest in these newfisheries.

-Fresh fish/processed seafood exhibition corner
This was a newly established corner this year, in which
exhibitors presented their fresh fish and processedseafood products with confidence.

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JAN. 2012-Energy-saving fish cooking methods

The energy-saving technique to broil and cook fishtastily using microwave oven drew attention of thevisitors. In the contemporary lifestyle, consumers tend
to pursue reducing cooking processes while they wantto eat fish. Others dislike smoke or smell caused in
cooking fish. The techniques catering to such consumer
demand have a great potential in boosting fish diet inJapan.

MEL Japan
MEL Japan respects and encourages
fishers' heart for responsible fisheries
Masashi Nishimura, MEL Japan Secretariat

N
Comments by participants
What follows are some of the outstanding
comments from exhibitors and visitors:-The customer assessment on our newly developed
products was high. The show was useful as we wereable to have many first-hand comments from ourcustomers, which we believe will serve for the future
sales promotion.
-We exhibited in the previous expos and we could feel
firmly that the name value of our products has beenenhanced.
-We had an excellent chance to publicize our products.
-We could conduct more than 1,000 samplings per day.
We really thank for this occasion as we could finalize
sales contracts with major companies. The results forour group were excellent.
-We could have unexpected buy orders from otherexhibitors during the show. Such a chance could never
have come unless we participated in the seafood show.
-We had consultations for large-lot buying fromdealers.
-We had been thiking of canceling participation in theexpo because one of our branches was damaged by
the earthquake. But by attending the show, it wasgood that we could show us all right to our customers.
We also organized a seminar during the show and had
many participants and a good evaluation.
-We are very satisfied that we could exchange cards
and start contact with many people from various
industries and companies.
-I was also involved in the damage of the disaster. Now
I know what actually happened in the disaster area,
what is and will be needed in the future. Looking backthe history of Japan, it seems that our country madea remarkable progress after it overcame the sorrowful
situation. I believe we should trust our future andadvance.

early four years have passed since Marine Eco-label
Japan (MEL Japan) --the first seafood eco-labelingscheme in Japan--was launched.
From the outset, questions have often been posed
as to the differences between MEL Japan and otheroverseas eco-labeling schemes. In what follows, I would
like to present what I came to learn from these questions
through implementation of the MEL Japan scheme fromthe perspective of the "spirit of compliance."
Although it was a short period of four years, I came torealize that the Japanese eco-labeling scheme took quite
a contrasting approach from overseas schemes in termsof the order of its dissemination. This difference came tobe realized on the basis of its actual implementation--notnecessarily upon how the scheme was so designed fromthe start.
In other words, as a general tendency, certification
under MEL Japan has been prompted and obtained by
the willingness of producers, as opposed to retailers, toappeal to consumers and the society at large regarding
their approach to sustainable fisheries.
After the certification of a fishery (i.e. certification inproduction stage), it becomes necessary to appeal to,and seek cooperation from, distributors, processors andretailers in order to actually deliver certified seafood
to consumers. It requires time and energy to build up
this system of cooperation. Propagation of MEL Japancertified products, so to speak, starts from the time of thecertification of a fishery.
This difference between overseas and Japan can be said
to be largely due to the difference in social environment inwhich the industries operate, rather than the differencesin the eco-labeling scheme itself.
Under these circumstances, a total of 13 types offisheries have obtained MEL Japan certification to date.
I believe this reflects the positive posture of Japanesefishers themselves toward fishery resource management,
and it is the true value of fisheries eco-labels in Japan.
Therefore, it is our hope, at the MEL Japan Secretariat,that the eco-labeling scheme would further spread inJapan, with the enhanced appreciation of this value
among distributors, processors and retailers.
In MEL Japan, the processes in fisheries anddistribution/processing are examined on the basis of
the certification criteria. As it is a certification system,

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the board of examiners carries out a full-scale andclose examination on the basis of detailed certification
criteria.
But from the viewpoint of compliance, however,fisheries may not improve easily if examiners hold only
to the position that fishers should be supervised throughexamination because they are originally incredible. I
believe eco-labels become truly effective only when
fishers seek certification because they want to makefisheries better, and after obtaining certification, they
make further efforts to live up to their reputation.
Ultimately, compliance cannot exist without the"heart" of workers in each stage of the industry. It isdesired that the eco-labeling scheme serves as a tool toencourage their heart.
It is our hope that MEL Japan will become amovement, not a campaign, that expands good will.
We will make steady efforts in the hope that the good
will links the sea with consumers, or the past with thefuture.

Topic
My collection of canned food stories

Canned Fish of Hope
Hayato Kurokawa

Kinoya Ishinomaki Suisan Co. in Ishinomaki,
located in the region of the Great East Japan
Earthquake and Tsunami on March 11, 2011, is aseafood packer well known for canned mackerel, using
primarily Kinka mackerel, a local type of mackerel foundonly in waters around the nearby island of Kinkazan.
The company gives special attention to producing
fresh pack products from mackerels, sardines and otherfish bought at the wholesale market that same day.
Kinoya--which calls itself the smallest cannery inJapan--was subjected to enormous damage by theGreat Earthquake and Tsunami, with its office building,warehouse and factory utterly destroyed. In point offact, the company was located only 50 meters awayfrom the Ishinomaki fishing port.
President Kimura and the employees were completely
at a loss in face of the enormity of the disaster. But,then, they found gold-colored cans of mackerel

JAN. 2012glittering in the midst of the debris of the destroyed
warehouse. The cans had been buried in the foul smellingsludge. But Kimura was convinced that the contents of thecans remained safe as they were covered by hard metals.
Volunteers who came from outside Ishinomaki helped dig
out and wash the cans with much care, and brought themto Tokyo to sell mainly in Setagaya Ward. As many of theJapanese readers might know through media reports, theproducts--called Canned Fish of Hope--became a big news
story.
Why were the canned fish sold in Setagaya? It isbecause there are many lovers of Kinoya's products in theward. Notably, a restaurant called "Sabanoyu" in Kyodo
town, Setagaya Ward, has held many special food eventsusing canned mackerel. There, many people who tasted
canned Kinka mackerel found the food really palatable,
and the word spread around in a short period of time.
Kyodo is a unique town which has tried to revitalize itself
with canned mackerel. Now, more than 10 restaurants
in the ward--centering on Sabanoyu--are offering their
original menus using canned mackerel. As a matter offact, Kyodo became a miraculous town overcoming theeconomic recession affecting the restaurant industry
caused by the global financial turmoil in late 2008.
Sabanoyu owner Mr. Suda and his colleagues thought
it was their turn to return the favor to Kinoya who had
earlier contributed much to the revitalization of Kyodo, andthey launched an assistance campaign for restoration fromthe disaster. Every week someone from Kyodo drove toIshinomaki to deliver the rescue goods they collected andhelp dig out the buried canned mackerel and they broughtthem back to Tokyo. A team of volunteers to wash andkeep storage of the cans was organized in Setagaya Ward
to promote sales of the products.
In marketing, however, labels indicating the contents
and other information on the products had fallen off. So
the organizers collected relief donations equivalent withthe tag price in exchange for the products. This approachseems to have touched people's heartstrings.
This rescue activity was taken up often by newspapers
and television as a model case for assisting restorationof the disaster area. This is why canned mackerel fromIshinomaki came to be called "Canned Fish of Hope."
As a result of this activity, the inventory of Kinka mackerelcans has run out. Then, at the end of October 2011,
Kinoya organized a thanksgiving event. I also made asmall speech at the event, as one who introduced Kinoya
to Kyodo residents.
The proceeds from sales will partly be allocated to
the restoration of Ishinomaki, with the remaining being
given for the reconstruction of Kinoya Co. Although thecompany was able to begin marketing new products,
with the cooperation of other firms, the process of its
reconstruction is only at a starting point.
There are many other seafood processing firms thatwere subjected to catastrophic damage by the earthquake
and tsunami. I am racking my brain on what I can do tohelp them. But, all in all, I believe such gentleness of theJapanese people to help one another will certainly become
the driving force toward restoration from the disaster.

Canned mackerel recovered from debris

The readers are cordially invited to send their comments on articles in this issue to mnishimu@suisankai.or.jp--Editor