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© KYODOAnnual eel-eating day becomes pricey treat in Japan
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gogogo
Brutal, let's all celebrate eating an endangered fish!? Time to reboot this festival with something more sustainable.
smithinjapan
Ganbare Japan: " I wont stop eating eel because of unreasonable demand of environmentalist. It is a Japanese tradition."
And you are precisely the Reason why it will become extinct, same as bluefin tuna, and many other animals that you've been programmed to eat on certain days and claim to be YOUR culture. The world does not owe you unagi -- you owe it, and if you truly love it and want to continue it being a part of your culture and the world, you need to realize that eating a piece of it several times a year "just because you Always have" is not necessarily a good Reason for doing so.
Honestly, I've never experienced a culture as willing to walk to its own demise, in various ways, as this one, and just mutter "shouganai". At the very least, if you guys want to eat them into oblivion, stop crying about it being lost, and definitely stop blaming other countries and cultures for pointing out the stupidity of overfishing/eating WHILE you lament the disappearance of that you overeat.
LandofExcuses
Hear, Hear!
smithinjapan
Here's an idea -- stop this asinine day.
Yubaru
International cooperation with Japan regarding an issue about resources taken from the ocean.
Dude needs his head examined! You want cooperation, you gotta learn to cooperate FIRST! There are some much,much, larger "fish" that need protection!
Cricky
A special day to eat something endangered? My next Premiun Friday I declare it Panda steak day, the next Premiun Friday its Koala battered. It all makes sence when put together.
wtfjapan
I wont stop eating eel because of unreasonable demand of environmentalist. It is a Japanese tradition.
and its that mentality which is why its endangered, same with Tuna. The tradition BS is why Japan gets itself into these predicaments, tradition isnt a trump card for conservation. If eel become extinct then what are you going to eat, a picture of a eel drawn onto a bowl of rice!?
Himajin
People used to eat different fish in different seasons, and the eel season was short and in summer. Now eel is frozen and eaten year round, more demand means declining stocks...it's not hard to figure out. The custom of eating fish mainly in peak season has been all but abandoned, and it's starting to have an effect. Who'da thunk it?
Pukey2
In my neck of the woods, we switch the aircon or fan on and drink an extra glass of water.
NCIS Reruns
That is only part of the problem. Eels cannot be bred in captivity. They spawn near Guam and make a long journey to Japan. For various reasons related to their life cycle and the environment, their numbers have been declining.
A lot of famous old eel specialty restaurants in Tokyo, like Benkei in Ueno, began closing years ago due to difficulties in securing affordable supplies.
The Gusto restaurant chain sells an una-ju teishoku for about ¥1,300 that's a pretty good value. Since it's slathered in sweet sauce, it's hard to differentiate the flavor of a cheaper import from native eels.
Hello Kitty 321
They should also provide eels with a way to avoid all the dams that have been built preventing them from traveling up the rivers.
Speed
With these absurd prices it's just a matter of time before this tradition dies out. Hopefully people will begin listening to their conscious, too. They're endangered.
Serrano
"The Maruetsu supermarket chain was selling broiled domestic eel for 1,980 yen"
They are selling Chinese eel for 1,100 yen.
sf2k
Looks like a collapse alright
Ah yes China exports a lot of eel to Japan
Eel was put on Japan's "Red List" a while ago but since it doesn't come with any enforcement it's as good as gone
how do you debate an empty plate?
Pro tip: stop eating food that's on an endangered species list.
Maybe start replacing the festival with potatoes. They can be locally grown in an array of varieties. Chefs of Japan can be quite inventive when it comes to food
kohakuebisu
Bluefin tuna are currently endangered in the Atlantic and at under 3% of historical levels in the Pacific. Dead ones at Tsukiji fish market are a tourist attraction.
(Yes I eat it myself sometimes. Well, my kids do. I prefer to eat cheaper things)
sf2k
should be a no take-backsies no brown-envelope full iron clad really really moratorium on eel and tuna, should they wish to ever eat it again in future
oldman_13
Farm raised eel, problem solved.
Ganbare Japan!
I love unagi-don in summer with my family. Yes, its expensive, but it is a treat just a few times a year. I wont stop eating eel because of unreasonable demand of environmentalist. It is a Japanese tradition.