Tohoku Quake & Tsunami Hit Japan's Fishing Industry Hard

The accompanying photographs of the Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo were taken during my December 2010 trip to Japan.



Source: Tom Baker, The Daily Yomiuri

The buzz out of Japan is that high-end seafood prices since the Tohoku Earthquake (and tsunami) have dropped.

According to a Twitter tweet by Tom Baker:

As demand plunged since quake, Tsukiji fish market says high-end seafood prices are dropping. Sea urchin is down 50%.

After reading this, I checked around and found that there are many reasons for this. The infrastructure in Japan's seafood industry has been damaged. Some fishing fleets were destroyed. Also, there are fears that seafood from northern Japan has been contaminated by radiation (it hasn't, but try to convince some people otherwise). Some of these rumors are even being spread by fishermen. And, restaurants simply aren't buying due to a lack of customers.



Japan's $2.5 billion annual fishing industry plays a big role in world distribution of seafood products as a buyer and processor. The quake caused a major disruption in the industry.



According to a Reuters story:

The tsunami that hit Japan this month took such a huge toll on people, equipment and fish that supplies of some seafood could be cut off for a year or more, industry workers said on Tuesday.

The Tsukiji Fish Market auction in Tokyo has been closed to tourists.



The neighboring sushi restaurants to the Tsukiji Fish Market now sit half-empty. Normally, they are packed with eager tourists who sometimes have a two-hour wait to be seated. (I had no problem being immediately seated. Then again, I was there at about five o'clock in the morning last December.)



It is hard to believe that four short months ago that the famed bustling fish market I visited has been hit this hard. The industry will eventually recover. Whether it is a full recovery or drastically changed is an open question.



I hope these people are able to bounce back soon. These are hard-working and friendly people and I enjoyed hanging out with them.

Above, a worker from the Sushizanmai sushi restaurant near the Tsukiji Fish Market and I during happier times.

UPDATE (3/25/11): More from The Daily Yomiuri.