Year-Round Delicious Taste with Full-Life Cycle Farmed Kurose Buri (Japanese amberjack) | Part 2 | The Secret Behind Its Fisherman-Approved Flavor

Hello! I'm Kurose Buri, born and raised in Shibushi Bay. Today I'll be exploring the secrets behind our delicious taste. For details about the farming technology that supports our production, please check out Part 1!

I'm Kubota from Kurose Suisan, a Nissui Group company. Feel free to ask me anything about Japanese amberjack farming.

I'm Miki from Nissui. I research artificial juveniles at the Oita Marine Biological Technology Center

I heard that professional fishermen near the Oita Marine Biological Technology Center are fans of Kurose Buri. They actually choose farm-raised fish?

They certainly do! While farmed Japanese amberjack once had a reputation for strong odors, advances in full-life cycle aquaculture technology and specialized feed development have transformed that perception. Getting such positive feedback from those who remember the earlier days of farmed fish makes it especially meaningful.

Research has really led to impressive growth! Traditional farmed Japanese amberjack might only reach 2.5kg by spring of their second year, while Kurose Buri grows to 4.5kg!

What makes Kurose Buri delicious throughout the year?

While wild Japanese amberjack traditionally peaks in winter, we wanted to produce delicious fish year-round. This meant developing the ability to obtain eggs artificially at any time.

We have developed various technologies, starting with artificial juveniles - hatching eggs and raising juveniles. Through extensive research into water temperature and daylight conditions, we created maturation management technology that allows us to collect eggs year-round.

So you're essentially signaling to the growing fish when to mature!

Three days after hatching, Japanese amberjack develop mouths and begin feeding. On day four, they gulp air from the surface to form their swim bladders. This organ is crucial for proper development, so we carefully adjust light intensity and water flow to encourage this natural behavior.

This was challenging at first. Since we were operating outside the natural spawning season, we had to make continuous improvements, such as using land-based tanks with controlled conditions, before successfully achieving full-life cycle aquaculture.

Each Japanese amberjack has its own unique characteristics. Isn't it a challenge to maintain the same high quality year after year?

We analyze individual DNA to track lineage and select each generation's parents based on weight, body composition, proportions, and genetic immunity. This selective breeding technique improves quality with each generation. DNA testing also prevents inbreeding.

Feed quality greatly affects taste in farmed fish. About 20 years ago, one of our researchers discovered the remarkable effects of red pepper after extensive feed composition experiments.

Red pepper? Am I eating that, too?

Usually, the dark meat of Japanese amberjack discolors after several days of processing, but feed containing red pepper prevents this. It also promotes ideal fat content and improves texture.

We named this proprietary feed 'Marbless,' and use it as finishing feed for all our Group's farmed Japanese amberjack.

I had no idea that the feed was a Nissui original!

We also take special care during harvesting to maintain meat quality and color. We process the fish on the harvesting vessel to prevent excessive movement, then immediately transfer them to ice water. They're rushed to temperature-controlled processing facilities where cooling continues through processing and shipping.

It's a race against time! So many people working together to maintain freshness from harvest through processing to shipping.

So, there you have it: the secrets behind our delicious taste. Please check out Part 1 to learn about the farming technology that makes it all possible.