Japan
Toba's oysters aren't growing, forcing the cancellation of its season-opening festival
Oyster farmers in Onoura Bay, in Mie Prefecture, are starting the season with no oysters ready to sell after growth fell far below normal.
Oyster season has begun in Toba, in Mie Prefecture, with nothing to sell. Farmers in the Uramura district, one of the best-known oyster-growing areas in the region, have found Pacific oysters much smaller than usual, along with a significant number of dead ones.
On October 8, the day the first shipment was scheduled, producers pulled the ropes up from their rafts and found many of the shells open and empty. Onoura Bay, Mie's largest oyster-farming area, has about 1,250 rafts and around 50 businesses working in the trade.
Production has been declining in recent years as sea temperatures rise. Last season, however, was close to normal, and expectations were high this year because the Kuroshio Current's large meander had come to an end. Farmers are now returning the small oysters to the sea in baskets, hoping they will grow once the water cools.
The shortage has forced organizers to call off the Uramura oyster season opening festival, which had been scheduled for October 18. They expressed regret over the decision, noting that it is an event many people look forward to every year.