A giant bluefin tuna sold at a Japanese auction on Sunday for less than five percent of the record-breaking sum paid last year amid concerns over soaring prices for the prized delicacy.
The 230-kilogram (507-pound) bluefin tuna was purchased at the Tsukiji market's first auction of the year for 7.36 million yen ($70,000), significantly down from the 155.4 million yen paid for a fish of similar quality in 2013 -- slipping below 10 million yen for the first time in five years.Bluefin is usually the most expensive fish available at Tsukiji, the biggest fish and wholesale seafood market in the world.
A piece of "otoro", or the fatty underbelly, can cost up to 2,000 yen at high-end Tokyo restaurants.
The winning bidder, Kiyoshi Kimura, president of the company that runs the popular Sushi-Zanmai chain, said the quality of the fish was as good as last year's, telling reporters: "It's the best."
The price decline was in part due to the greater number of bluefins available from Oma, the northern Japanese city that is a top site for tuna fishing.
Source: NewsOnJapan
A piece of "otoro", or the fatty underbelly, can cost up to 2,000 yen at high-end Tokyo restaurants.
The winning bidder, Kiyoshi Kimura, president of the company that runs the popular Sushi-Zanmai chain, said the quality of the fish was as good as last year's, telling reporters: "It's the best."
The price decline was in part due to the greater number of bluefins available from Oma, the northern Japanese city that is a top site for tuna fishing.
Source: NewsOnJapan
