In its first installation on Japanese cuisine, JAPANiCAN.com introduced rice production in Japan through the city of Tome in Miyagi Prefecture.

In this next series of blog entries, we focus on aquaculture, the breeding and raising of seafood, an indispensable part of the Japanese dinner table. For this, we go to the city of Kagawa Higashi, located on the south central island of Shikoku, and look at how yellowtail is raised in the warm and gentle Seto Inland Sea.

When eating fish, take a moment to remember the people involved in fish production, who make it possible to safely enjoy sushi and sashimi.

In this series, we report from Higashi Kagawa, a city of about 36,000 people in the eastern part of Kagawa Prefecture.

Yellowtail aquaculture got its start in 1928 when Wasaburo Noami (1908-1969) succeeded at breeding yellowtail in Adoike, a lagoon in Higashi Kagawa--the first time this had ever been done. It was a revolutionary moment that became the foundation of seafood aquaculture today.

Adoike [a lagoon adjacent to the Seto Inland Sea]

Today, yellowtail farming is carried out in a vast fish pen six kilometers offshore. As 2008 is the centennial of Noami's birth and the 80th anniversary of his success at fish breeding, a variety of events are underway in Higashi Kagawa.

One of the distinct characteristics of Japanese is that individual fish species often have different names depending on how large they are. This is true for yellowtail as well.

In English, the yellowtail is also known as the Japanese amberjack or by its Latin name Seriola quinqueradiata.

Preparation methods include sashimi (raw with soy sauce), sushi, grilling with soy sauce, and stewing. Yellowtail rates with bluefin tuna in popularity in Japan. An important role of the aquaculture industry is to provide delicious yellowtail to the market at a reasonable price.

JAPANiCAN has been registered as a "yellowtail owner" in commemoration of its participation in the aquaculture efforts. The staff at JAPANiCAN are all looking forward to some beautiful yellowtail for dinner this winter.

In future blog entries, we will be focusing on local sightseeing spots and events in addition to looking further at how the yellowtail aquaculture business has grown. These entries are supported in part by the Hiketa Fisheries Cooperative and the Higashi Kagawa City New Tourism Association.

A Hiketa yellowtail poster
"The difference in taste lies in Hiketa"