Japan’s surprisingly diverse swimming crab market

Published 2020년 11월 25일

Tridge summary

In 2019, Japan imported over 2.09 million kilograms of frozen swimming crab, primarily from Bahrain and China, with Tunisia introducing the gazami crab as a commercial fishery product. The gazami crab, also known as the waterside crab, is commonly consumed in Japan and is the world's most heavily fished crab species. The U.S. also imports the blue swimming crab, with Thailand, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, and Indonesia being the main suppliers. Japan's Ariake Sea is experiencing a decline in the gazami crab stock, prompting the development of a management policy to address the issue. The article also highlights the difference in crab prices based on size and shell hardness, and the preference for male crabs in summer and female crabs in winter due to their egg content.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

The seafood-adoring nation of Japan certainly loves its crab.Japanese Customs data for year 2019 shows that a total of 2,095,285 kilograms of frozen swimming crab (Portunus sp.) was imported. There is not a separate category for Callinectes species, which would cover the Atlantic blue crab. Instead, any imports in that genus would fall into “Crabs, other.” Picked or canned meat would also be separately listed. However, the frozen whole form is popular in Japan.The top supplier of Portunus species was Bahrain with 1,174,017 kilograms, and that country’s biggest supplier is Jaradah Blue Crab Factory. China comes in second at 636,570 kilograms, and trailing far behind are Myanmar (95,180 kilograms), Tunisia (75,000 kilograms), Vietnam (37,635 kilograms), and South Korea (21,420 kilograms).Tunisia lies outside the natural range of the two species common in the Japanese market – the “gazami” crab (Portunus trituberculatus) and the blue swimming crab (Portunus armatus, also called ...

Source: Seafoodsource