Saving the world, one fish at a time [1]
Monday, December 1, 2008 - 17:43. Updated on Monday, August 17, 2020 - 18:07.
Story and photos by Linny Folau
Matangi Tonga Online photo-journalist Linny Folau was a 2008 Sasakawa Pacific Islands Journalism Fellow. This story is the third in a series of articles written while she was in Japan on her Fellowship.
Fighting to preserve a fish-eating culture that is slipping away among a younger generation in urban areas in Japan is the mission of an unusual non-governmental organisation. Its goal is to inspire Japanese youngsters by tickling their taste buds with fish and other seafood dishes, which they help to prepare.
Concerned about the fish eating culture and how the consumption of fish especially by young people in city centers is slipping away, the Women's Forum for Fish is on a mission to preserve an integral part of Japan's food culture by inspiring the younger generation to eat fish. One of their main venues is in schools, such as the Mitaka Minami Elementary School in a leafy suburb of Tokyo.
In a classroom filled with around 30 young children aged between 8 to 12 years old, the shrieking voices and smiling faces displayed the first-time encounter of the children with handling fresh fish. As explained by Ms. Akiko Sato, Secretary of the Women's Forum for Fish, the only knowledge and contact of city children with fish is usually through pre-packaged fish meat bought by their parents from the supermarket.
Hokkaido women
For the young children, this was indeed a treat. Their diets, which increasingly revolve around meat dishes or Western-inspired food, creating an interest in fish had to be lively. To add that spark, wives of fishermen were brought it from the northern island of Hokkaido. They explained and illustrated how to clean fish and shellfish. The children were in awe listening to stories from the women on how hard they live getting up at 4 a.m. and not getting back until evening. One youngster wanted to know if the women got to watch television (they do).
Part of the program allowed the students to touch the fish. In no time they were happily touching, poking and feeling a flounder fish. One child who helped in the cleaning of fish even noted how soft the skin was while another shrieked and covered her eyes when its head was carved off. Parents together with the children collaborated in the cooking efforts and it was a marvel after it was completed with dishes ranging from sashimi to delicious scallops, which we enjoyed.
Cooking program
Ms. Yuriko Shiraishi, Founder of WWF, is as passionate about fish today as she was 15 years ago when she started the non-government organisation. Dressed in a deep-blue T-shirt adorned with images of fish, the sprightly 75 year old was very proud at how successful the cooking program was.
She explained that this was the 67th school in Japan in which WWF has held the program. A well-networked NGO, WWF has contact with over 1,000 fishermen throughout Japan. Shiraishi took up the mission because of her concern with deterioration of Japan's fish culture. She has been steadfast in her convictions since she started in 1993 and at 75, she is more determined than ever that the job can be done through awareness and practical experience.
Shiraishi noted that she is not making any money from it, "but we are committed to preserving what is our traditional diet, and although we are not getting paid for what we do, we are committed to preserving what is an integral part of our culture."
All parts of the fish
Japanese for generations have developed ways of using all of the parts of the fish effectively and this was passed down from generation to generation. But, nowadays, Western culture has influenced culture in urban cities, the result being that convenience and changing tastes often mean cultural practices are lost.
"Concerned about a deteriorating fish eating culture and the value of the sea and marine resources, Government did not do anything so I realized that I had to do something about it and we are committed to it," Shiraishi explained.
She added that she never asked government for help because she wanted to do it her way. Instead, she enlisted a network of fishermen and their wives throughout the country in the mission. In Japan there are 3,000 commercial fishing villages, which might seem like a large number but this is actually smaller than it used to be.
Networks
Connecting fishermen and fishing villages is vital in this organization in connecting rural fishing practices to big city culture. Their network of fishermen and their wives have supported this by financing their own way to help in the city programs like this one.
"No other people in the world are blessed with seafood and have fostered in the habit of fish eating as a culture more than Japanese that is why it is so vital to maintain and preserve it," she said.
Other programs including 'Talk with Mammi' and an Umiko Club began in 2000 letting children know the importance of sea and fishes and to connect with Tokyo. In summer the group selects 30 elementary schoolchildren, who arevchosen through story composition, to become fishing reporters.
"Fish is a valuable resource and if not exploited it can continue to provide food in a sustainable way, and I believe seafood can save the world," said Shiraishi.
See also:
Taiji defends Japanese whaling culture [2]
Fish-mania: from big eye to bluefin, a Japanese passion for tuna [3]