Catharina Klein
Research expert covering Japan
Fisheries and aquacultures in Japan - statistics & facts
Once the world’s largest fishing nation, Japan is now towards the bottom of the leading ten countries in the fishery and aquaculture sector. With the implementation of exclusive economic zones in the 1970s, Japan had to fall back on exploiting fish stocks in its own territories, resulting in severe overfishing. Additionally, global warming increasingly threatening fish stocks: In recent years, over 60 percent of fish stocks in Japanese waters were estimated to be at a low level. Only a small percentage of seafood caught in Japan meets international sustainable seafood guidelines. Consequently, in 2018, official fishing regulations were revised to provide a more sustainable, quota-driven management of marine resources.
The majority of catches supply the domestic market with fish and fishery products. Japan houses the world’s largest wholesale fish and seafood market, Tsukiji fish market, which is located in central Tokyo. Most of the country’s fish wholesale markets are located at landing areas, streamlining logistics and, therefore, ensuring freshness.
The number of individuals working in the fisheries industry continues to decrease. Similar to the overall agricultural sector, the industry is struggling to generate interest in younger generations. By implementing innovative technologies, the Japanese government not only strives to improve sustainability and its processes, but also to create new job opportunities within the industry.
Overall, overfishing, low fish stocks, and a shrinking workforce in the agricultural sector and the fishing industry remain major issues. Japan will need to prioritize sustainability and smart technologies and make changes to its fishing resource management to tackle these issues in the future.
The modern fishing industry in Japan
Nowadays, more than 2,000 fishing ports are operated across the country’s islands, with marine fisheries showing the highest production output within the sector, followed by marine aquacultures. Inland water fisheries and aquacultures are comparatively minor sub-sectors of the fishing industry, focusing on the production of shellfish and eels.The majority of catches supply the domestic market with fish and fishery products. Japan houses the world’s largest wholesale fish and seafood market, Tsukiji fish market, which is located in central Tokyo. Most of the country’s fish wholesale markets are located at landing areas, streamlining logistics and, therefore, ensuring freshness.
The number of individuals working in the fisheries industry continues to decrease. Similar to the overall agricultural sector, the industry is struggling to generate interest in younger generations. By implementing innovative technologies, the Japanese government not only strives to improve sustainability and its processes, but also to create new job opportunities within the industry.
Japan’s controversial whaling policy
Whaling in Japan is based on a long tradition. Industrial whaling began in the 1980s, but organized whale hunts and consumption of whale meat reach back even further. Japanese whaling has been carried out since 1988 under Article VIII ('scientific whaling') of the International Whaling Commission’s founding treaty. This provided a loophole by allowing the selling of the animals once the research part was carried out to avoid wastage. In 2014, the UN's International Court of Justice determined that Japan's Antarctic whaling was commercial and, therefore, illegal. In response, the Japanese government announced its withdrawal from the IWC to resume commercial whaling in the country's territorial waters at the end of 2018. Japanese whaling has been a topic of conflict among pro- and anti-whaling groups for many years. Numerous campaigns were launched to protest unregulated whaling, which is seen as the main driver for dwindling whale populations.Overall, overfishing, low fish stocks, and a shrinking workforce in the agricultural sector and the fishing industry remain major issues. Japan will need to prioritize sustainability and smart technologies and make changes to its fishing resource management to tackle these issues in the future.
