Manila: Underutilized fish, often overlooked due to low market value or limited distribution, are gaining popularity in Japan through online sales. Assorted products featuring whole fish that are unknown to consumers, compared with those of familiar species such as tuna and salmon, as well as other easy-to-use fish items, are also attracting demand.
According to Philippines News Agency, the fisheries industry is seeking ways to make effective use of underutilized fish that are either not widely distributed as food or are too small to fetch prices at traditional markets. Benners Inc., a company purchasing fish in Fukuoka Prefecture in southwestern Japan and from other regions across the country, prepares them with a variety of seasonings. The company sells frozen, ready-to-eat products through its mail-order service, Fishlle! A set of six assorted packages is priced at 5,927 yen by subscription, including tax. It also handles more than 200 kinds of domestically sourced wild fish.
These include rabbitfish and other species that tend to fetch low or unstable prices in conventional markets. The fish are prepared with about 40 varieties of seasonings, including Japanese, Western, and Chinese styles. Some products are designed to be eaten raw, requiring only thawing before being served over rice, company officials said. They added that these items are particularly popular.
Tokyo-based Vivid Garden Inc. operates the "Tabe Choku" website, which allows consumers to purchase farm and seafood products directly from producers. The platform has attracted about 1.3 million users, of whom about 20 percent have ordered seafood in recent years. Assorted fresh fish boxes often include underutilized species.
Orders are particularly strong in urban areas such as Tokyo and Osaka Prefecture, western Japan, and are mainly placed by customers comfortable preparing fish at home. Interest is also being fueled by social media videos showing how to cook uncommon fish, Vivid Garden CEO Rina Akimoto said. "I never imagined that fish I didn't recognize could taste so good," one customer said after buying underutilized species such as green-eye fish and "gashaebi" shrimp.
