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Hello everyone! I am from "Rias Ark Museum of ArtMy name is Masamitsu Kayaoka, and I am a curator at the "Katsuobushi Museum." In my previous article, I focused on the processing process of katsuobushi and its food culture.
The theme this time is ...
This time, we will broaden our perspective and introduce the history of seafood processing and distribution, including bonito. This article may be a bit serious, but we hope you will stay with us until the end!
*Please refrain from reproducing any of the photos in this article.
Edo Period
A major turning point in the history of this region was when the locals learned and introduced the pole-and-line fishing method for skipjack tuna from Kishu fishermen in 3. After this, the catches increased in volume, and it is believed that the techniques for preserving skipjack tuna by processing them into dried fish or salted products developed in the region.
Net fishing for bait sardines, essential for line-and-line bonito fishing, also became popular. Fishermen supplied boats with sardines as bait in the summer, and processed them into fish meal in the winter. Fish meal is made by boiling fish, squeezing it, and drying it. In the late Edo period, mainly in western Japan, the cultivation of cotton, indigo, rapeseed, and other crops became popular. As these commercial crops require large amounts of fertilizer, there was an increased demand for fish meal, which is an excellent fertilizer, and sardine meal from the region was actively transported to urban areas. In Kesennuma, a shipping industry flourished, where fish meal, dried bonito flakes, salted products, and other marine products produced in fishing villages, as well as tobacco leaves produced in mountain villages, were purchased, loaded onto ships, and transported to the Edo area for sale. (We will cover tobacco leaves in more detail in the next article.)
A ship-themed plaque (6) dedicated to Kotohira Shrine in Hajikami, Kesennuma City. It depicts a merchant ship in detail.
The successful and capitalized shipping merchants traded with city merchants, bringing city culture and industrial technology to the region, and building the foundation for the development of the port town that continues to this day. For example, the seaweed cultivation and processing techniques that were the forerunners of the region's aquaculture fishing were introduced from Edo by the shipping merchant Ikari Shinbei. After the Kan'en era (1748 onwards),Haneda ShrineRecords show that at the annual festival, merchants would bring out many floats to accompany the portable shrine procession and compete with each other to see who could make the most splendid, giving an idea of the prosperity of this port town, centered around shipping merchants.
The portable shrine procession of Haneda Shrine (2019). A scene from the ritual at Shinmeizaki. Unfortunately, modern festivals no longer include floats.
Meiji and Taisho era
In the mid-Meiji period, the chikuwa industry was launched using the spiny dogfish, which had not previously been used. However, overfishing quickly led to a shortage of raw materials. So in the early Taisho period, a method was developed to catch blue sharks and use them as the raw material for chikuwa. This technology for processing and distributing blue sharks laid the groundwork for Kesennuma's status as a "shark town," including the shark fin industry that would later emerge. During the Meiji period, Kesennuma's chikuwa was known throughout the country as a fine product. However, in 1915 and 1929, major fires broke out, engulfing the town of Kesennuma in flames and dealing a major blow to the chikuwa industry, which, combined with a shortage of raw materials, led to a decline.
The Kesennuma fire in 1929
On the other hand, between these two fires, new technologies such as motorized fishing boats and mechanized processing using electricity became more widespread. In 1920, a refrigerator operated by Kuzuhara Refrigeration Co., Ltd. (said to be the earliest full-scale freezing facility in Japan) was installed, making it possible to ship chikuwa year-round. This cycle of "introducing new technology in the wake of disasters" has been repeated many times in Kesennuma's history.
The Kesennuma Refrigerator of Sanriku Suisan Refrigeration Co., Ltd. was established in Kesennuma in 12. It was the second large-scale refrigeration facility established in Kesennuma after Kuzuhara Refrigeration.
Showa period
After the war, in the 1950s, Kesennuma became the number one pacific saury catcher in Japan, and processing into canned goods and other products became popular. However, the environment in the bay deteriorated due to factors such as wastewater from processing plants and reclamation work in the bay, and productivity of seaweed and oyster farming declined. Then, in 1960, the Chilean earthquake and tsunami hit, and the farming facilities were reset, which led to the introduction of wakame farming, a new technology at the time, and salting processing technology became widespread. As a result, the seaweed farming and processing industry declined, replacing the wakame farming and processing industry. This was also the time when bonito fishing, which had long been the mainstay of the local fishing industry, surrendered its position to deep-sea tuna longline fishing. The amount of sharks caught by longline fishing increased, and the processing industry using sharks became popular again. The background to Kesennuma's current status as the "city of sharks" is the technology, experience, and sales channels accumulated over its long history, which dates back to the chikuwa (fish cake) industry in the Meiji era.
Dried shark fins. Most shark fins come from the blue shark. Kesennuma, with its many sunny days and frequent winds in the winter, is the perfect place for making dried goods. [Interview cooperation: Chuka Takahashi Suisan Co., Ltd.]
Fish wholesalers in action
In terms of distribution, fish wholesalers have supported the development of Kesennuma's fishing industry from the Edo period to the present day. Fish wholesalers not only wholesale seafood products, but also provide financing to fishermen, stimulating the economy and accumulating capital. After the fish market opened in the Showa era, fish wholesalers began to focus on "preparation wholesaler business." Preparatory wholesaler business mainly involves loading necessary supplies onto foreign ships and providing meals and personal care for the crew. Some of these companies have successfully switched their business base to fishing companies using the capital they have accumulated, and are still supporting the local economy today. Kesennuma is currently one of the port towns with the largest landing volume in Japan, but it is ships from outside the prefecture that support the landing. Fish wholesalers and other fishery-related parties have been working to attract fishing boats and promote the landing and distribution of seafood. The fish wholesaler has been doing business with foreign vessels for many years, and through the close support it has built up a relationship of trust with the crew, to the point where even today there are many crew members who say that "Kesennuma is their second home."
The landing of the catch at the old fish market (early Showa period). Bonito is lined up in the back, and swordfish are lined up in the front.
Long-established fish wholesaler "Onoken Shoten" family seal.
Summary
What did you think? In this article, we have tried to summarize the general history of Kesennuma's seafood processing and distribution. Kesennuma as a "sea town" was certainly not born overnight. This historical and cultural accumulation is surely the greatest asset that supports the town today, one that "lives with the sea." In the next article and beyond, we will think a little more about this "asset." Thank you for your continued support.
*We have collected documents and old photos related to Kesennuma's chikuwa (bamboo shoots) industry and freezing business. If you have any information, please contact the Rias Ark Museum of Art! (0226-24-1611)
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Reading about it makes it even more delicious! Oyster farming in Kesennuma
For the latest information, please contact the appropriate department.