Sushi devotées in Japan are celebrating the the coming of something special: The second-largest tuna ever sold at Tokyo’s famed Toyosu Fish Market. The mammoth Blue Fin earned a stunning price of (US)$1.3 million. But is it safe to eat?
The auction winners – well-known sushi restaurant chain owners the Onodera Group – said that the 608 lb. / 276 kg tuna is truly special.
‘Good luck’
“The first tuna is something meant to bring […] good fortune,” Onodera official Shinji Nagao told reporters, news agency AFP reported.
The near-record was described as ‘weighing as much as an average motorcycle’.
The monster will be carved up into thousands of servings and at the Onodera’s Michelin-starred Ginza Onodera restaurants and at its Nadaman restaurants across the country -while its supply lasts.
The Blue Fin is one of a few species particularly coveted by sushi aficionados. It was considered en-dangered as recently as 2015, but is has been making c comeback since.
Some caveats?
The Japanese love their sushi – and other fresh seafood dishes. And they’ll pay monumental prices for something as special as a tuna roll made with whisper-thin slices of the (US)$1.3 monster. The prestige and fan fame of the giant fish are almost ‘priceless’ to both the restaurants and their dis-cerning customers.
But the question remains… Is it safe to eat?
We keep hearing about unsafe it is to consumer older, larger, top-of-the-food-chain fish such as big tuna. They’re almost certainly chock-full of dangerous stuff such as as heavy metals.
Mercury is a specific concern. It’s one of the most common toxic materials found in fish and seafood, and once in your system, it never purges itself.
Too much mercury is ultimately deadly. But the effects of even substantially lesser amounts of the substance can be devastating. Mercury poisoning is particularly dangerous to the lungs and brain. Other mercury ‘targets’ include the heart, kidneys and immune system.
Lower limits recommended
The World Health Organization already issues recommendations for ‘safe’ limits on mercury content in fish and seafood. But the watchdog group FoodWatch is calling for even lower limits – 0.3 mg per kg of product – considering a series new medical findings over the past couple of years.
My take
The tuna controversy has received a fair amount of coverage in the mainstream media. And lesser though still significant attention in the online communities.
But there’s little evidence that Japanese seafood lovers are particularly concerned. In fact, they’re known, collectively, as risk-takers.
Well-heeled Japanese diners are probably most famous for popularizing the consumption of Fugu – the most poisonous fish in the seas. A microscopic ‘dose’ of so-called ‘blowfish’ neuro-toxin can kill in minutes. Other countries have outlawed Blow Fish sales and consumption. In stark contrast, the Japanese have mandated special chef-training and certification systems to allow the practice to continue…
~ Maggie J.