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Nippon Suisan Proposes Deep-fried Hoki, Frozen On Boat in Antarctica

March 2, 2009

Nippon Suisan (Nissui) is strengthening its sub-brand "Chikyuu no Gochisou" (Earth's feast); the company is involved in the entire integrating process from procurement of raw materials to production. This "integrated business" aims to maximize natural resources for customer value with a philosophy of integrity to manage the entire process of procurement, processing, to marketing in a stream line through collaborations with Nissui global and partner corporations. This spring's new commercial product "Hoshiibundake Shiromisakana to Tartar Sauce no Furai" (as much as you want: fried white fish with tartar sauce) embodied the company's mid-term plan TGL (global links = overseas sites and local links = domestic stations).


Previously, the company's fried white fish entailed the following procedure: freezing Alaskan pollack from the US and Russia locally, unthawing the fish and producing fish blocks and freezing them again in China, and then finishing them up as a final product at Hachikan company (in Hachinohe), Japan.


The newly revised procedure involves generating fish blocks from Argentina hoki and freezing them on boat, and then completing them as a finished product at Hachikan, to preserve their freshness and stabilize the procurement of raw materials. Norio Hosomi, managing director of Nissui, says "Nissui groups' involvement in the entire process from harvest to processing; this system is unique to only Nissui." The company will appeal that "Hoki tastes much better than Alaskan pollack."


Another product of "Chikyuu no Gochisou" is "Hoshiibundake Ebi Rich Katsu" (as much as you want: cutlet with shrimp) also makes the best of the global links: using Penaeus Vannamei shrimp of Zhonglian Suisan (Guangdong Province, China) for stuffing, making a bonding material out of white and pink shrimp of NIGICO Co. in Vietnam, and fishing it up at Onagawa, Japan. Shrimp is abundantly used, taking up 43.1 percent of an entire product. Sauce americaine is used as seasoning to accentuate the shrimp flavor. Each item consists of five packages (20g x 5).


The definition of the company's "integrated business" is that "main raw marine materials are harvested and processed within the group," which includes white fish (surimi also), cod roe, shrimp, crab, and shore fish. In addition, it also means that "main raw marine materials are produced at aquaculture businesses approved by Nissui," which contains amberjack (Kurose), shrimp (Zhonglian, China and Indonesia), salmon (SA, Chili), gingin (Onagawa), and eel (Xiamen, China).




The original article was published on March 2, 2009 and was translated by Kiyo Hayasaka.


Aquaculture Workshop: Fisheries Agency Says It Will Aid Half of GAP Costs

February 25, 2009

The Council for National Fishery Ground Conservation Measures and the Council for National Fishery Cooperatives of Sea Aquaculture Measures held "2008 Fisheries and Aquaculture Fishing Ground Conservation Workshop, Fishing Ground Environment Seminar, and Food Safety Measure Seminar" in Tokyo on February 23. There was a lecture on Good Aquaculture Practice (GAP).


At an informal meeting, Akira Dofutsu, assistant manager of the Fish Ranching and Aquaculture Division in the Resources Enhancement Promotion Department of the Fisheries Agency said, "We will subside the GAP system within a subsidy for the vital fisheries industry. It will be half of the grand ratio, resulting in \20 million for operating costs for the year of 2009."


Kazumasa Nomura, advisor of Norinchukin Research Institute Co., gave a lecture, "For securing reliability of seafood products: Future Strategies of Japan Fisheries Cooperatives." Explaining a discord between safety and reassurance as a top issue of food safety, he said, "Consumers demand no risks due to a lack of scientific information provided. They need to be informed that risks are well controlled in the system and relationships based on mutual trust must be built." Regarding improvement of risk communication, he pinpointed that relevant businesses were required to make some efforts to ensure bidirectional exchange of opinions and information.


Ensuring safety and Managing Risks with GAP

Masashi Maita, professor of Tokyo University of Marin Science and Technology, gave a speech about "Good Aquaculture Practice." GAP is one of the certification systems of all the stages of production and handling process to ensure and provide safe farmed fish to consumers. Generating an introduction manual by the end of March, the Fisheries Agency will promote the system.


Professor Maita continued to say, "Ensuring safety and managing risks becomes of great importance to expand consumption of cultured fish. To this end, incorporation of a production and process management system, namely GAP, by producers will be effective."


Dofutsu from the Fisheries Agency at the informal meeting, mentioning a governmental subsidy, said, "GAP will be given financial support from a subsidy for the vital fisheries industry. Target executors are prefectural and municipal governments, fisheries cooperatives, and public-interest corporations; a half of the expenses will be aided. Operating costs for 2009 will be \20 million and we are looking at about a million yen for each area and there are a total of 20 nationwide."


Operation of the GAP project entails creation of localized GAP and its promotion based on the blueprint created by the government. The assistant manager eagerly expressed, "We will work hard to get 80 percent of domestic aquaculture businesses GAP-certified by 2013." About 60 people from Japan Fisheries Cooperatives nationwide and paint makers attended the workshop.


The original article was published on February 25, 2009 and was translated by Kiyo Hayasaka.

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