The Dawn of Sustainable Seafood in Japan

In the global fishing economy, Japan is a titan. Japan is the second-largest fish and seafood importer in the world and the top market in all of Asia. However, retailers and restaurants sell seafood without considering sustainability. Seafood caught by illegal, unreported, and unregulated fisheries flows into the unethical Japanese market. More than half of the coastal fish stocks in Japan are now in over-fished status. Scientists remain silent and consumers are blissfully unaware. Walking through the aisles of a Japanese supermarket, it is uncommon to see sustainable seafood certification labels. Why is this? Because there is a severe public governance deficit in the management of fisheries and aquaculture. In Japan, public regulation is dysfunctional. But there is hope. Private certification schemes (similar to Seafood Watch) have begun to play a central role in promoting sustainable fisheries and aquaculture through an enlightened market. Recently, the largest supermarket company in Japan announced a new policy to sustainably source all seafood and aquaculture products. The tides may indeed be turning. Join Dr. Isao Sakaguchi, Visiting Scholar at the Center for the Blue Economy, as he discusses current efforts to rescue the nascent sustainable seafood market in Japan.

Free, open to the public. Part of the Ocean and Coastal Resource Management Speaker Series, presented by the Center for the Blue Economy.

Lecture Location: The McGowan Building is located at 411 Pacific Street, Monterey, CA, 93940, on the campus of the Middlebury Institute of International Studies. Attendees enter through the glass doors from Pacific street, and room 102 is located inside to the right. The McGowan Building is indicated as #20 on the campus map. Access the campus map at: http://www.miis.edu/admissions/visit/campusmap

Parking is available in any Middlebury Institute campus lot after 5pm or on the street (time limits on surrounding streets end at 6pm).

Questions: Contact Rachel Christopherson at the Center for the Blue Economy at cbe@miis.edu or 831-647-6615 x1.