Bluefin tuna sells for record Y155.4 mil in Tokyo

Did they test that tuna for radiation?

Back on topic please.

Hi Smith, Totally agree about the sharks' fins - unfortunately most of those were imported as there are very few sharks or fish left in HK waters. WWF HK reports that the average fish caught within Hong Kong waters these days is smaller than 10 grams- Japan might want to learn form that... The trawling ban applies to the fishing & shrimp fleet & only came in Jan 1st, the govt. having spent millions to buy out the fishermen, most of whom are retirement age anyway. But it only applies to HK waters, not mainland China. WWF HK has a good article on its web site & a FAQ section - a lot of what they say could apply equally to Japan and practically any fishing community in the world. Yes, the bidding frenzy makes it worse and encourages more mad plundering.

That is a lot of sushi. Putting that kind of bounty on Bluefin tuna.. will send pirate fishing boats into a feeding frenzy could harm the long term sustainability of big Tuna. In Hawaii we catch yellowfin tuna and big eye and aku for our family tables.. but now greedy non Hawaiian fishing boats are hording these prized tuna as well and selling it to Tsukiji. I encourage Kimura-san and the Tsukiji Fishmarket to take measures to protect tuna, sharks and over fishing practices of scavengers and monkey people in boats from killing the oceans.

I love Sushi Zan-mai.. its $1 sushi.. three floors of great food and equally as expert sushi masters.. I just love the whole market .. its people, its atmosphere.. and I would hope that Kyoshi Kimura and Sushi Zan-mai lead the movement to keep Tsukiji Fishmarket from moving to a polluted land fill site across the bridge. IT would be huge mistake for Japanese culture .. tourism.. JIRO-san the small restaurant owners who still ride bicycle before sunrise to get their fish from long term partners.. fishing families who have for generations worked, lived and made this area thrive. I dont know the politics.. it is not my town.. but there is just something not right about the city trying to move what is the #1 tourist cultural attraction other than the Imperial Palace.. and Ginza. I love Japan.. I love Chuo, Tsukuda, everything about the food for food is culture and the people are the land.. and the sea. Care for the land and the land will care for all. Kimura-san, Dentsu, All business owners and residents of Tsukiji must unite and make a stand for righteousness, fishing culture, the old ways of honesty and trust that made Japan the great culture it is still today.

Japanese eat 80% of the bluefin tuna caught worldwide, and much the global catch is shipped to Japan for consumption.

I wonder if the people of Japan are familiar with Dr. Seuss' story of "The Lorax." I imagine that if the fishing sonsumption rate keeps going up, they will find themselves in a similar situation in regards to bluefin tuna. I find it ironic that the world and Japan kept hyping the "Kyoto Accords" in trying to stop global warming and greenhouse gases, and lamblasted the US for not signing onto it, yet Japan seems intent on overfishing these types of tuna. So much for saving the planet.

Wonder, for starters (pun intended) what its Cesium-137 level is per 100 grams.

The problem here is not too few fish, it's too many humans eating up all the world's natural resources. This planet cannot support 7 billion people eating up natural resources, throwing away good food, countries not joining together to share and distribute resources. Now is the time for this world's people to join together as one country and govern itself as one group instead of thousands of different entities or else we will face extinction in a thousand years or less

"Efforts to curb overfishing of tuna in the Pacific were blocked by big countries that refused to cut their catch at a meeting of tuna-fishing nations in the Asia-Pacific, delegates said Thursday. The Western and Central Pacific Commission, comprising 30 member nations and territories, ended a five-day meeting in Manila with minor agreements to help tuna stocks recover, said observers who attended.

......the Parties to the Nauru Agreement, a coalition of small Pacific island nations, blamed the European Union, the United States, Japan and many Asian nations for taking most of the adult bigeye tuna with “longline” fishing vessels."

from this article:

http://globalnation.inquirer.net/59013/big-nations-block-curbs-on-tuna-overfishing

from facebook:

Tuna in trouble - actions in South Korea Our oceans are dangerously overfished - if current fishing trends continue, scientists warn that all commercial fish will disappear by 2048. That’s why Greenpeace have been taking action in South Korea to demand a more sustainable tuna fishing industry. Last week, activists delivered a giant tin of tuna to company officials, filled with messages demanding an end to ocean plunder, and, yesterday, hung a huge banner at the headquarters of Korea’s worst culprit, Dongwon Industries.

It's still too cheap! When all these bluefin tunas will be gone from the sea, they will have to pay this amount for a 2 kg one!

and for some odd reason makes people here think it's more delicious if they must pay more

Yes, how odd are the people here? People paying more money for something they think is more delicious. Actually, like any people who frequent gourmet restaurants anywhere in the world. In fact, people here are very well aware that the high price for this particular fish only reflects the fact that traditionally high prices are always paid during the first tuna auction of the year.

The stranger part is that when you point out the tuna is near extinction the Japanese blame it on the rest of the 20% or so for eating their 'cultural heritage',

No, they don't.

"80% of the Tuna worldwide"? This is yet another story that makes no sense to me. I am not pointing a finger at the Japanese, but when Tuna are near extinction, we know to blame. For god's sake eat something else for a change.

Jack... EXACTLY. Except I do point th finger at the Japanese. Their priorities are all screwed up.

“Everything we’re hearing is that there’s no good news for the Pacific Bluefin,”

The species has been over-fished for decades to feed their lust for cheap sushi and some clown willing to pay a ridiculous amount for one fish is glorified instead of vilified. Japan keeps telling everyone who will listen how environmentally sensitive they are, but the press makes this guy out to be some kind of hero. Folks should be protesting at his restaurants, not flocking to them.

Jannetto: "Even Hong Kong, famed for its seafood, has brought in a trawling ban this year in a last ditch attempt to halt the decline."

Sadly, bans in Hong Kong have only resulted in them changing how they do things, which is must the same in Japan. Recent rooftop photos have caught HEAPS of shark-fins being dried out for soup, for example, despite the bans being put into place. And despite the limit to fish on blue-fin tuna people continue to overfish, and guess where most of it goes.

Like I said, all this three-times-the-bid-of-last-year means is that it'll be higher next year. That makes people money, and for some odd reason makes people here think it's more delicious if they must pay more. It'll be everyone else's fault when the tuna are gone, though.

but he was trying to "encourage japan"

its obvious that this is a marketing ploy..

Agreed, Smith, Miffy and alliswell. Only needs a look at the history of cod in the N. Atlantic to see how quickly fish stocks can crash. Even Hong Kong, famed for its seafood, has brought in a trawling ban this year in a last ditch attempt to halt the decline. Egotists like this need to be ignored & fish stocks need proper management. And diners need educating. Sigh.

What is even stranger is the Australians are at the forefront of pushing for an increase in the quota for bluefin tuna.

In October 2011, the Commission for the Conservation of South Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT) increased the Australian quota by 13 per cent to 4,528 tonnes. And things are only set to get better, says Brian Jeffries, CEO of the SBT Industry Association. "The quota increase is the first year of the longer-term increases announced by the CCSBT. They are expected to take the Australian quota to 6,665 tonnes by 2015."

According to the Australian Southern Bluefin Tuna Association recent stock assessments show a dramatic increase in the number of juvenile fish, and sustained strength in the population of older fish. I gather the Australian Southern Bluefin Tuna Association is to Australia what the The Institute of Cetacean Research is to Japan. ''We are celebrating the recovery of the stock," says Brian Jeffries.

I don't care what it cost. That Bluefin tuna should be in the ocean swimming around and procreating. There are not too many left and Sushi Zanmae can share the blame in their decimation and decline.

JackInMilwWI: ""80% of the Tuna worldwide"? This is yet another story that makes no sense to me. I am not pointing a finger at the Japanese, but when Tuna are near extinction, we know to blame."

The stranger part is that when you point out the tuna is near extinction the Japanese blame it on the rest of the 20% or so for eating their 'cultural heritage', despite them importing it from Europe. As such, since it's near extinction and despite the efforts of university professors to cultivate a few in Wakayama, the price will be higher every year. And you know what, it won't taste one tiny bit better than the tuna you could get elsewhere. But there's a weird tendency in Japan to think that 'expensive' is a positive adjective, and something is more "uuuummmmaaaaiiiii!" if it cost them and arm and a leg, when it's been proven people don't know the difference between 20,000 yen Hokkaido crab and 80 yen crab-flavored pollock.

Sure this will further escalate an unhealthy competition for tuna hunting in the new year. Media should stop reporting this.

Tuna for the ego. Perhaps in another life the fish will have him on a plate,

jpn is singlehandedly wiping out the maguro population so prices are likely to climb higher

@Upgrayedd:

most of Japan knows this guy's shop has the highest quality tuna in the world right now.

As the article says, "...The high prices don't necessarily reflect exceptionally high fish quality...."

Big is not always better or tastier, only more expensive.

"80% of the Tuna worldwide"? This is yet another story that makes no sense to me. I am not pointing a finger at the Japanese, but when Tuna are near extinction, we know to blame. For god's sake eat something else for a change.

Cheap advertising. This fish and the guy have been all over NHK all day so most of Japan knows this guy's shop has the highest quality tuna in the world right now.

"$1,758,167"

And that's after Abe started weakening the yen!

Something is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it.

Geez at 1.5 million Aussie dollars i could buy myself a nice house, farming my very own Tuna....

oooo I ate breakfast there once. Had to get up at about 5:00am but it was worth it.

$1,758,167 US You could buy ten houses for that price.

You could buy an apartment for that price!

southsakai - Almost 2 million USD? WOW!

It is 200,000 bucks, not 2 million!

I saw this on the news today. The guy who bought the fish has gotten so much publicity from it that I am sure he will recover the cost through added sales. He's a pretty shrewd businesses man.

What a way to start the new year. I'm jealous I wont have a piece or two!

Almost 2 million USD? WOW!