Pilot project to boost income from domestic bluefin tuna bears fruit

Large purse-seine vessels and processors cut out middlemen to raise quality and value

Tuna-cutting show set for Hyundai Department Store Pangyo from Saturday to Oct. 1

A K-tuna cutting show and tuna sashimi display [Provided by Busan city government]
A K-tuna cutting show and tuna sashimi display [Provided by Busan city government]

Busan city announced Wednesday that a "K-seafood cooperation event" will be held in the Greater Seoul area to promote high-quality domestically caught bluefin tuna and improve consumer access, as part of its pilot project to raise income from domestic bluefin tuna.

The pilot project was designed to improve freshness, quality and added value by enabling large purse-seine fishing fleets to sell their bluefin tuna catch directly to domestic processors. The K-seafood cooperation event was planned to make the high-quality domestic bluefin tuna — now backed by a stable supply chain built through the project — more readily available to consumers in the Greater Seoul area.

The groundwork was laid in March, when the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and Busan city stepped in with administrative support, including regulatory improvements. Building on that, Dongwon Industries and the Large Purse Seine Fisheries Cooperative signed an MOU, setting the pilot project in motion. The combination of government-led regulatory reform and private-sector cooperation has begun to reshape the distribution structure for domestically caught bluefin tuna.

The "Taste of Busan's Sea — K-Seafood Cooperation Pop-up" event runs from Saturday through Oct. 1 at the pop-up zone on the first below-ground floor of Hyundai Department Store's Pangyo branch. A range of hands-on programs and menu offerings will be presented during the event to highlight the quality of domestic bluefin tuna and mackerel and encourage consumption.

The centerpiece is a live tuna-cutting show. Bluefin tuna weighing more than 100 kilograms, caught in Korean coastal waters by Busan-registered vessels, will be broken down on-site each day and sold in limited quantities. The event is expected to give consumers a rare chance to see and taste domestically caught bluefin tuna up close.

Domestic mackerel — long familiar as a grilled or braised dish — will also be reimagined for younger palates, with menu items such as mackerel nigiri and mackerel rice pot offering a more casual way to enjoy the fish.

"We hope this will be an opportunity to widely promote the excellence of K-seafood, including domestically caught bluefin tuna, and to expand consumption," said Shim Jae-min, head of Busan city's Ocean Capital Strategy Office. "Through public-private cooperation, we will work to make fresh and safe domestic seafood more accessible."


kaf2002@heraldcorp.com