Meiho is only the third fishery in Japan to be MSC certified, after Kyoto flathead flounder and Hokkaido scallop fisheries.
This milestone marks a new chapter for fisheries in the Tohoku region, and signals that collaboration, hard work and commitment has the power to improve the health of fish stocks, and provide hope for the many in the region who rely on this fishery for their livelihood.
Meiho Fishery was established in 2012 following the Eastern Japan Great Earthquake in March 2011. A lack of skipjack tuna prompted CEO Kenji Matsunaga to start Meiho Fishery Inc. Now they are the first certified fishery in the quake-hit area.
Meiho Fishery’s CEO Kenji Matsunaga says: “My experience of the Earthquake made me realise that delivering sustainable seafood to the market is inevitable for future and this belief inspired me to start this sustainable fishery. I therefore am very delighted that our fishery is certified by the MSC. Recently this fishery's parent company Meiho Co. Ltd., a processor, gained MSC Chain of Custody certification for all seafood from this fishery, and my next agenda is to promote our sustainable skipjack and albacore tuna caught by pole-and-line in the market.”
Meiho’s two pole-and-line fishing boats catch about 3,000 metric tonnes of skipjack and albacore tuna per year.
