Sushi season opens anew: $736,000 fish

[PRBuzz]

Freak: your fish finally made it to market!!!


This tuna is worth savoring: It cost nearly three-quarters of a million dollars.
A bluefin tuna caught off northeastern Japan fetched a record 56.49 million yen, or about $736,000, Thursday in the first auction of the year at Tokyo's Tsukiji fish market.
The price for the 593-pound tuna beat last year's record of 32.49 million yen or about $416,000. The price translates to $1,238 per pound — also a record, said Yutaka Hasegawa, a Tsukiji market official.

[Typhoon]

Cue every news article printed about western atlantic bft to mention the $700k fish.

[likwid]

Originally Posted by Typhoon

Cue every news article printed about western atlantic bft to mention the $700k fish.

Cue every bayliner owner asking what they need to be general category.

[RIROCKHOUND]

I can fish with my 30's and 4/0 Senator, right?

[likwid]

Originally Posted by RIROCKHOUND

I can fish with my 30's and 4/0 Senator, right?

Yes.

[RIROCKHOUND]

Originally Posted by likwid

Yes.

Thanks.
what should I use for bait?

[likwid]

Originally Posted by RIROCKHOUND

Thanks.
what should I use for bait?

Make sure to use all wire. And the biggest hooks you can buy.

I heard seaworms worked well.

Do you have a harpoon?

[Slick Moedee]

math on this fish. Does this make sense?

-Assuming the 593 lb is a dress weight
-Purchased for $793,000
-Thus, price/lb is ~$1241, or $77.60 oz
-Assuming an order of Nigiri or Sashimi weighs about an once
-Article states an order will sell for $5 (assumption an once)
-That equates to $80/lb or $47,440 for the entire fish
-Thus a loss of ~$688,560

[big jay]

Originally Posted by RIROCKHOUND

I can fish with my 30's and 4/0 Senator, right?

Only when the crowd is anchored up tight in the mudhole.

[Raven]

it's a delicacy

[Mr. Sandman]

That "first" fish of the year thing in Japan is suppose to be good luck, they bid the heck out of the price.

Record price paid for massive tuna – This Just In - CNN.com Blogs

[JackK]

Originally Posted by Mr. Sandman

That "first" fish of the year thing in Japan is suppose to be good luck, they bid the heck out of the price.

Record price paid for massive tuna – This Just In - CNN.com Blogs

Right? Correct me if I'm wrong, but hasn't the "first fish" for the past three years broken the record price set the previous year?

Seems like it should just be a given that it's going to happen around this time of year... haha

[Typhoon]

Boat got paid $10

[likwid]

Its a gain, they have the first fish of the season and will be slammed due to it.

[Slick Moedee]

could be viewed as marketing/advertising. Wouldn't the boat make more if on consignment vs. flat dockside price? Not quite sure how it works for fish landed there.

[likwid]

Originally Posted by Slick Moedee

could be viewed as marketing/advertising. Wouldn't the boat make more if on consignment vs. flat dockside price? Not quite sure how it works for fish landed there.

boats sell to dealers. dealers sell to restaraunts.

its a "tradition" thing along with the restaraunt getting first dibs on selling THE first fish.

[thefishingfreak]

The rumor mill will have that fish as "the one the Feds took away from the dragger"

Next January it'll be broken again.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

[Soundbounder]

Kiyoshi Kimura, this year's big spender and president of Kiyomura Co., paid almost double what was paid last year at the first auction of 2011.

But his decision to pay so much may have been more of a publicity stunt than a true reflection of the market for bluefin. When asked why he willingly paid three-quarters of a million dollars for one fish, Kimura said he "wanted to give the country a boost," according to the AP. Japan is still reeling from the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that tore along its northern coast, leaving death and destruction in their wake. The fishing industry was not spared in the damage.

Why Overpriced Japanese Sushi Is Bad For Bluefin Stocks : The Salt : NPR