Japanese Retailer Aeon Promotes Fresh Seafood to Sustain Local Fisheries

Copyright Aeon Co.

Aeon Co., a major distributor and retailer in Japan, announced on November 11, 2009 a new initiative to sustain local fisheries in Japan. The company unveiled plans to acquire three tons of seafood landing at the Sea of Japan port of Sakata on November 14 by making a large purchase directly from the Fisheries Cooperative of Yamagata Prefecture (JF Yamagata), and the next day selling the fresh-from-the-sea fish at 55 Aeon Group stores, including JUSCO, in the Tohoku area in northern Japan. (Due to bad weather, fish catching on Nov. 14 was cancelled.), In spring 2010, Aeon and JF Yamagata plan to start to coordinate this kind of operation on a once-a-month basis, seven months per year.

Aeon became the country's first major retailer to deal directly with a local fisheries cooperative on August 16, 2008, when it purchased all fresh-from-the-sea fish and shellfish in a fishing net from JF Shimane to sell at stores in the Osaka, Kyoto, and Sanin areas. The company encouraged customers to buy unfamiliar fish or those which are not up to the standard in size by providing the menu. The company later implemented the same retailing process and made it an ongoing initiative in central Japan since October 2008, as well as in the Tokyo metropolitan district since March 2009. By adding the Tohoku area to the mix, Aeon is expanding the initiative to cover most of the Honshu (the main island of Japan) market.

Japan's domestic fisheries production is declining due to weak demand for fresh seafood and escalating fuel costs, dropping the nation's self-sufficiency rate for seafood to almost 50 percent. One of the reasons for dropping demand for fresh local fish is that consumers are turning away from local fish markets in favor of mass-market retailers. Japan's coastal fisheries produce smaller volumes of a diverse range of seafood, which does not meet the mass market's need for a large and stable supply of standardized products. The new initiatives are cooperative efforts between fisheries cooperatives nationwide working towards sustainable domestic fisheries and Aeon to promote a healthy seafood culture.

Aeon Co. official website
http://www.aeon.info/en/aboutaeon/

Posted: 2010/02/08 06:00:15 AM