Kidogawa Fishery Cooperative: Lively salmon upstream at Kidogawa River

Seeing salmon swimming upstream, egg collection and fertilization

During the season for salmon fishing at Kidogawa River, a net is put out every day at 11am. In recent years the catches have been poor, but this year especially, in the few days before the FoodCamp tour, there were hardly any salmon to be found. But on the day of FoodCamp, a little miracle occurred (FoodCamp guests really are lucky!).

When Kentaro Suzuki of the Kidogawa Fishery Cooperative opened up the salmon trap, he was surprised to find several in there! Not only that, he also saw a number of salmon swimming on the river’s surface.

When the FoodCamp guests arrived, Suzuki first led them to the outlook-post. He started telling the guests all about salmon fishing, while the guests enjoyed the view over the Kidogawa River, all the way to the sea. Suzuki told about the changes salmon fishing in the area underwent after the 2011 disaster, the Act on the Protection of Marine Resources, and the mystery of salmon always returning to the river where they were born.

Next, Suzuki caught a salmon from the trap by himself. Casually walking through the water, he came back with one male salmon, and was met with an applause from the guests.

　

Next, he got a female from the salmon trap, and took them to the salmon hatchery, where he showed the whole process from egg collection to fertilization. Cutting open the belly of the female salmon, the eggs came rolling out like tiny little gems, after which Suzuki added the sperm from the male salmon. Putting them underwater, the fertilization process begins. The guests were given the rare opportunity of putting the fertilized eggs into the water.

　

After fertilization, the eggs are allowed to develop in peace underwater, and after they’ve hatched the little hatchlings are released into the river around March. Salmon make their way by the Sea of Okhotsk to the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska, where they eat their fill, before finally coming back to the Kidogawa River in about four to seven years. This led many of the guests to conclude: “In that case, we’ll just have to come back in four years to see them again.”

Riverside-dining: Enjoying precious salmon and their eggs

After this rare experience, it was time to head to the dining area, set up along the river. Especially for a November-day, it was very calm and pleasant by the river. Even for the coastal area of Fukushima, the weather was almost unseasonally good. Although tents were set up to shield the guests from the hot sun, every once in a while clouds appeared, and with very little wind, it was the perfect FoodCamp weather.

At every edition of FoodCamp we try to provide a special first drink to go with the theme of the tour. This time, it was a Yuzu Squash, made from the yuzu fruit that Naraha is well known for. It was well-received, not in the least by Kentaro Suzuki, who joined the guests at the dining table.

　

The menu for the day was provided by Chef Fukushima from Cross Wonder Dining in Yotsukura (Iwaki City). As always it was served warm from our trusty food truck.

The precious salmon was served as a rare salmon roast, and the eggs were served in Ochazuke (rice in green tea). Nowadays, salmon eggs are a precious delicacy, but in years past the egg-production was so bountiful, it led to the famous Japanese dish TKG (rice served with a topping of (raw) egg) to be served here with salmon- rather than chicken eggs: the Naraha TKG. As Suzuki explained this, the guests could eat their fill of wonderful salmon eggs, while dreaming of the salmon returning to their river of birth.

　　

Also, the starter (Hokkaido Clams) as well as the salmon roast were served on plates made by the Obori Soma-yaki pottery kiln Tokichirogama in Iwaki City’s Yotsukura-area. These plates were made special for FoodCamp, thanks to our continued collaboration.

t was a very special day for the guests, as well as for the chef and FoodCamp staff, which left all of us to hope for a bright future and the safe return of the salmon to Kidogawa. We hope you will continue to support us until that day comes!