Grilled Eel Slightly Cheaper This Year In Japan
Eating grilled eels in this season has been a long-standing tradition in Japan. This year consumers will be pleased to see the price drop slightly.
Japan's Fisheries Agency says the domestic catch of juvenile Japanese eels for cultivation between last November and April was 17.1 tons -- the highest level in six years.
Including those imported from overseas, 20.1 tons of juvenile eels were placed in aquaculture ponds this season. That's about 30 percent higher than last year.
All this helps to push the price of eels shipped from farmers down by about 10 percent compared with the same period a year earlier.
It also means lower retail prices for consumers. Major retailer Aeon is selling one grilled eel for about 19 dollars. That's about 10 percent cheaper than last year.
The eels currently being cultivated in ponds will be shipped in a few months, so prices are expected to fall even further from autumn onwards.
