The buyer of a US$145,000 tuna at Tokyo’s first auction of the year yesterday said he hoped that the purchase would “brighten” a year hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The top price paid for a tuna at the traditional opening auction at Tokyo’s Toyosu Fish Market fell for a third consecutive year, as demand was affected by the pandemic.
The ￥16.88 million shelled out yesterday by a restaurant operator and a wholesaler for the blue fin tuna was far below the 2019 record of ￥333.6 million.
Photo: AFP
The Toyosu auction is a closely watched tradition that draws a horde of fish wholesalers at the beginning of each year.
Bidders sometimes shell out an enormous amount to win the top-priced tuna, which is seen as bringing good luck, as well as plenty of publicity for the buyer.
Yesterday’s top-priced 211kg fish was caught off the northern Aomori region of Japan, famous for its quality tuna, and went to Michelin-starred sushi restaurant operator Onodera Group and Japanese wholesaler Yamayuki.
Photo: Bloomberg
Hours after the early-morning auction, the prize fish was delivered to a restaurant operated by Onodera in Tokyo’s upscale Omotesando neighborhood to be publicly sliced and filleted.
“I participated in the auction hoping to get the top-priced tuna, which is considered auspicious, and serve it to our customers to brighten their year ahead a little, even as our world remains marred by the pandemic,” head chef Akifumi Sakagami said.
The tuna is to be offered to customers in Japan and at the firm’s restaurants abroad, including in Hawaii, New York City and Los Angeles, he added.
Sushi enthusiasts gathered outside the upscale Tokyo restaurant to await the tuna, eager for a morsel.
Junko Kawabata, 78, said she had taken the expressway from her home in eastern Tokyo for the opportunity to taste the top-priced catch.
“I just love tuna,” she said, proudly displaying a numbered ticket indicating she would be the first customer to be served. “I can’t wait to eat a piece of it.”
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