Conveyor Belt Sushi Market Increased by 8% in 2023, 5.5% Increase Projected For 2024 - SeafoodNews

Email Address is required.
Password is required.

Conveyor Belt Sushi Market Increased by 8% in 2023, 5.5% Increase Projected For 2024
The domestic conveyor belt sushi market, as reported by Fuji Keizai, reached a significant size of 782.9 billion yen ($5.04 billion) in 2023. This marked an 8% increase in sales from the previous year. The market maintained a stable number of 4,220 stores, similar to the previous year. Notably, the top chains experienced a recovery in customer numbers, attributed to higher average customer spending and increased stores and sales. The market is projected to grow by 5.5% in 2024, reaching…
To Read Full Story Login Below.

Note: All comments are displayed with user’s screen name. If screen name is not present, user’s full name will be used. Please go to My Account to update your screen name.
Submit comment or question
Comment Policy: SeafoodNews.com and Urner Barry have made the comment feature available to encourage further discussion of our news stories. Defamatory or offensive Comments, or comments deemed not relevant to the story will be removed, and if necessary, SeafoodNews.com and Urner Barry may restrict the right of individual subscribers to offer comments. IN all cases, comments represent opinions of the poster only, and do not represent fact, news, opinions or estimates put forward by SeafoodNews.com and Urner Barry.
LISTEN: TAGeX CEO Neal Sherman Talks Media Attention Surrounding Red Lobster Liquidation And More
Join Seafoodnews Podcast hosts Amanda Buckle and Lorin Castiglione as they welcome Neal Sherman, the CEO and founder of TAGeX, a company that has been a resource for businesses in all stages of facility and equipment lifecycle since 1987. TAGeX made headlines this week with the announcement that they were handling the Red Lobster equipment liquidation auctions. And Neal joins the Seafoodnews Podcast to share insight on how those auctions went.
Silver Bay Seafoods, Channel Fish and More Win Latest USDA Seafood Purchase Requests
Earlier this month the USDA issued a handful of bid invitations for seafood products, including catfish, salmon and walleye, and Alaska pollock. While offer invites for the Alaska pollock products ends today, the USDA has already announced the winners for the catfish, salmon and walleye products.
Looking first at catfish, the bid invitation from the USDA went out on May 2. The bid was for a total of 392,000 lbs of catfish products for use in domestic food distribution programs, including unbreaded raw fillets and…
ANALYSIS: Tilapia Market Troubles – Supply Shortages and Supply Chain Disruptions

The tilapia frozen fillet market from China is experiencing significant turbulence, driven by several key factors affecting both supply and demand. U.S. importers are currently facing low inventory levels as the industry expected that supply would improve by late May or early June. However, weather-related setbacks in April, as well as reports of premature harvesting have caused further delays.
The two major tilapia farming regions in China, Guangdong and Hainan, have faced unusual weather patterns, which have contributed to higher mortality rates and…
North Atlantic Right Whale Calf Presumed Dead; Fourth Calf of 2024 Calving Season To Be Missing
An estimated 350 North Atlantic right whales (NARW) remain in the ocean, which makes every mother whale and its calf critical to the recovery of the endangered species. But unfortunately, researchers at NOAA Fisheries have documented four calves from the 2024 NARW calving season as “presumed dead.”
Since an Unusual Mortality Event (UME) was declared for the endangered whales in 2017, the United States and Canadian government have introduced safety measures to prevent fatalities or injuries related to…
Conveyor Belt Sushi Market Increased by 8% in 2023, 5.5% Increase Projected For 2024
The domestic conveyor belt sushi market, as reported by Fuji Keizai, reached a significant size of 782.9 billion yen ($5.04 billion) in 2023. This marked an 8% increase in sales from the previous year. The market maintained a stable number of 4,220 stores, similar to the previous year. Notably, the top chains experienced a recovery in customer numbers, attributed to higher average customer spending and increased stores and sales. The market is projected to grow by 5.5% in 2024, reaching…
Japan: March Surimi Products Output Fell 5.2% to 36,547 Tons, Household Spending up 2.9%
The Food Marketing Research & Information Center has released data indicating a significant shift in the national production of surimi products. In March, the production volume stood at 36,547 tons, marking a 5.2% decrease from last year. This trend, which began in February, saw only the other surimi products category, including crab sticks, surpassing the previous year’s results, while the production of other categories experienced a decline.

According to a report in the Suisan Keizai Shimbun, this is the second consecutive month that…

Prince William Sound Citizens’ Council Remains Committed to its Mission
Editor’s Note: This opinion piece is in response to an opinion piece published earlier this week called “Prince William Sound citizens’ council must recommit to its environmental mission.”

The Prince William Sound Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council is an independent nonprofit corporation whose mission is to promote the environmentally safe operation of the Valdez Marine Terminal and associated oil tankers. Our work is guided by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 and our contract with Alyeska Pipeline Service Company. Although the council is funded chiefly by Alyeska…
Tasmanian Salmon Industry Claims EPA Win
The salmon industry and the state government have celebrated EPA findings on the health of Macquarie Harbour which show a “great improvement” in the seabed.
But anti-fish farm campaigners and the Greens say the endangered Maugean skate is nowhere near safe or saved.
Macquarie Harbour seabed compliance results published by the Environment Protection Authority on Wednesday say the environment in the harbour is improving.
“In January 2024 all 35m compliance points were found to be compliant with environmental licence requirements. This is a great improvement compared to…
Large South African Fishing Companies Oppose Squid Quotas in Court
The commercial industry is being “greedy” says Eastern Cape small-scale fisher
– The South African Squid Management Industrial Association (SASMIA), representing the commercial squid fishing sector, has taken fisheries minister Barbara Creecy to court.
– SASMIA is challenging the minister’s decision to apportion a 15% fishing right for chokka squid to the small-scale fishing sector.
– Small-scale fishers from cooperatives in the Eastern Cape attended the proceedings.
The South African Squid Management Industrial Association (SASMIA), representing the commercial squid fishing sector, has taken Minister Barbara Creecy of…
Vietnamese Southern Province Seeks to Climate-Proof Aquaculture
Tiền Giang Province is seeking to develop aquaculture adapted to climate change to improve efficiency and create more rural livelihoods.
The Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta province has developed farming models for a number of aquatic species suitable for various localities.
They include advanced extensive shrimp farming, intensive shrimp farming, shrimp – rice farming, and high – tech shrimp farming in the coastal Gò Công Đông and Tân Phú Đông districts.
In Tân Phú Đông, also a riverine island, it has zoned major aquaculture areas.
These localities breed mostly…
California: Building Career Pathways to the Ocean Economy
Despite its job market and future workforce challenges, California has a massive job-generating opportunity just west of the coastline: the ocean.
It’s true that the ocean and its resources are increasingly being seen as the way to address the planet’s most challenging issues — food insecurity, energy shortages and even storing carbon emissions. While the potential of the ocean is significant, we need to make sure we are cultivating ocean jobs in a sustainable way.
Enter the “blue” economy: one of the fastest growing economic sectors in…
NL Snow Crab Drama Continues With Talks Of Plant Worker Strikes
It wouldn’t be Canadian snow crab season if there wasn’t drama in Newfoundland and Labrador. This year the standoff over pricing only lasted a week before harvesters and processors were able to come to an agreement to start the season. But now there are issues on the plant worker side, with the Fish, Food & Allied Workers (FFAW) Union threatening to take a strike vote.
Plant workers, who currently make on average between $16 and $18 an hour, have reportedly been without a deal since…
Court Upholds Challenges to Nova Austral’s Reorganization and Orders Liquidation of Salmon Company
It had been a particularly cumbersome process, but after seven months in court, disputes among its creditors and dodging bankruptcy on several occasions, in January, Nova Austral, the salmon company that reported debts of US$ 560 million, had managed to approve its judicial reorganization agreement.
The company, which stands out for being the main employer in Tierra del Fuego, would change ownership and the bondholders – a group comprising the British fund Fidera, which bought the shares of Moneda Asset Management, and the…
Scientists Point to Disease, Warming Waters to Explain Chinook Decline in Yukon River
Research on declining populations of chinook salmon on the Yukon River have led scientists to a theory that combines the stress of warm water and the damage of disease.
As salmon runs on the Yukon River continue to decline, most notably that of chinook salmon, those that rely on the fish have faced “hardship [and] lots of cultural loss,” said Keith Herron, a masters student in the College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences (CFOS) at UAF.
While these fish have historically been a staple of…
SFP 2023 Reduction Report Shows Continued Drop in Fisheries Performance
New reports by Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) released today (part 2) and October 2023 (part 1) show declines in performance of key reduction fisheries for the sixth year in a row, highlighting the need for more active and long-term industry engagement to ensure good fisheries management. Two more fisheries dropped into the “poorly managed” category: Chilean jack mackerel – SE Pacific (Peru), and blue whiting – NE Atlantic (which dropped after moving up in 2022). While most fisheries assessed in the reports continue to be…
Russia Confirms Plans to Increase Volume of Krill Catch This Year
Russia plans to significantly increase the volume of krill catch this year as part of its attempts to become one of the world’s largest krill catchers.
Russia (at that period the USSR) initially conducted complex expeditionary work to study and develop Antarctic krill resources in the 1960s, and began the actual fishing in 1971. Other countries joined later. The fishery was primarily conducted in the Antarctic Atlantic. The record krill catch (528.700 tons) was achieved in 1982, with the share of the…
Beijing Warns Manila Not to Abuse Fishing Arrangement
China has warned the Philippines not to abuse its goodwill arrangement that allows Filipinos to fish with small boats in designated waters near China’s Huangyan Island in the South China Sea.
“If the Philippine side abuses China’s goodwill, we will take countermeasures in accordance with the law,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a regular news briefing on Wednesday in Beijing.
The remarks came as about 200 Filipinos on board five commercial fishing vessels sailed on Wednesday toward the island, over which, with its adjacent waters, China has…

SeafoodNews.com is the most widely read seafood industry news in North America, with subscribers in over 50 countries. We provide a quick daily snapshot of the global seafood industry. Published in partnership with Urner Barry, the leading provider of seafood price, foreign trade and import data, we focus on the business side of the industry, plus everything that affects it. Our largest reader category is seafood buyers, followed by producers, importers and exporters, then distributors. Try us and you will be hooked.
Subscription: There are two options the free subscription which you can find here. this will give you access to updates every 72 hours or you can upgrade to premium access learn more here.
Featured Stories
A Timeline Of Red Lobster Leading Up To May 2024 Liquidation Of Select Restaurants
The Winding Glass: What the Decline of Red Lobster Means for the U.S. Seafood Industry Market Story
American Seafoods’ Tim Fitzgerald On The Importance Of Telling The Sustainability Story
EDITORIAL: From Cartoons to Temporary Tattoos; Finding New Ways To Get Kids To Try More Seafood
The Winding Glass: Lent 2024 Gives No Relief to Seafood Industry
After a Promising Beginning, is Singapore’s Cultivated Meat Industry Heading to the Slaughterhouse?
It was June 2022, and the lab-grown meat industry looked like it had a sizzling future.
The largest cultivated chicken meat facility in Asia broke ground in Singapore, with a 30,000 sq ft complex at Bedok Food City, set to produce “tens of thousands of pounds” of meat a year.
The company behind this audacious venture was US-based Eat Just, who had plans to sell lab-grown chicken meat under the label Good Meat.
Eat Just representatives were joined by…
Alaska Lawmakers Don’t Include Tribal Seats on Seafood Task Force After Intense Debate
A passionate debate within the Alaska Legislature about tribal sovereignty and a task force to course-correct the state’s seafood industry economic and ecological collapse resulted in last weekend’s final passage of a temporary eight-member Seafood Industry Task Force to spearhead recovery initiatives.
The state Senate bill passed its final legislative step with a 39-to-1 majority in a vote on the House floor, and the upper chamber unanimously approved it the same day. However, an amendment introduced by…
Seafood Meal Kits Gain Limelight at Industry Fair as Korean Food Makers Target Ready-to-Eat Market
From packaged tuna to frozen shrimp, seafood meal kits took the limelight at the Seoul Seafood Show, Korea’s major fisheries industry fair, this week, as Korean food makers ramp up their charge into the rapidly growing ready-to-eat packaged food market.A total of 179 companies from 16 countries showcased seafood and food ingredients at the 19th annual event hosted by the Korea Fisheries Association at COEX in Seoul under the theme “Blue Food-Tech: Innovation and…
Fishwife’s Retail Footprint Grows with Nationwide Expansion into Select Whole Foods Market Stores
Female-founded and led tinned seafood company – Fishwife – which aims to make thoughtfully sourced, premium, and delicious tinned seafood a staple in every cupboard, announced its national expansion into select Whole Foods Market stores. Moreover, Whole Foods Market will begin exclusively carrying Fishwife’s newly launched Albacore Tuna in Olive Oil and Albacore Tuna in Spicy Olive Oil through June 2024.
“Since we started conversations in 2021, Whole Foods Market has been an unbelievably committed supplier to Fishwife,” said Becca Millstein, CEO and…
Governor Lamont Champions Connecticut Oysters: Unveils Statewide Trail and New Documentary
Connecticut Oyster Trail Charts a Course Through More Than a Dozen Farms and Over 20 Restaurants and Stores
Governor Ned Lamont today announced the launch of Connecticut’s first-ever oyster trail, accompanied by the premiere of the new short-form documentary, Rising Tide to Table, which celebrates the state’s thriving oyster industry, from farm to fork.
The Connecticut Oyster Trail meticulously maps out the diverse array of oyster farms and culinary destinations statewide, encourages residents and visitors alike to savor the local flavor of…
Multimillion Fund Will Boost Innovation in Sustainable UK Aquaculture
£4.6 million fund will bring academia and industry together to tackle key challenges facing sustainable UK aquaculture.
Researchers and their industrial partners working in sustainable aquaculture are set to benefit from a share of a new £4.6 million Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) investment.
The Sustainable Aquaculture Partnerships for Innovation fund will support 10 projects designed to address specific challenges facing British aquaculture, including disease prevention and animal welfare.
All funded projects include at least one partner from industry who will…
VIDEO: Red Lobster Closures; Gulf of St. Lawrence Grid Closures; New Atlantic Sapphire CEO
Urner Barry seafood market reporters Lorin Castiglione and Josh Bickert host the latest episode of the Seafoodnews Weekly Video. Watch as Lorin and Josh break down the top stories of the week, from the shocking closure of a number of Red Lobster locations, to updates on fishing out of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and more…
Cooke Accused of Violating American Fisheries Act and Jones Act
Canadian seafood giant Cooke Inc. has been accused of violating the American Fisheries Act (AFA) and the Jones Act. The allegations stem from a lawsuit that was initially filed in June 2021, but sealed until this past April. However, the issue actually goes back to 2017 when Cooke acquired Omega Protein.

Cooke CEO Glenn Cooke said at the time that the acquisition of Omega Protein would help “further diversify the supply side of our business and support our strategy of responsible growth as a leader in…
Pioneering Hi-Tech Crabber “North American” Sinks Near Seattle’s Ballard Bridge
Early Tuesday morning, the well-known Bering Sea crab fishing vessel North American sank slowly in shallow water at a pier in Seattle’s Lake Washington Ship Canal.
The Coast Guard received a call that the 91-foot vessel was partially sunk at 7:30 a.m. and first responders from the Seattle Fire Department set up a containment boom for oil or fuel leakage. A dive team plugged vents to reduce additional fuel discharges, and a second layer of boom was deployed …
Photo of North American courtesy US Coast Guard.
Aquaculture Faces a Knowledge Gap Among Supermarket Consumers
Educating shoppers on the origins of the various seafood species is becoming a more vital, and frequently arduous, endeavor.
The terms “farm-raised” and “aquaculture” are a major riddle to many shoppers, and confusion about the meanings is keeping many potential buyers on the sidelines, analysts said.
Research from Arlington, Va.-based FMI — The Food Industry Association found that just 23% of seafood shoppers prefer farm-raised selections, while 39% favor wild-caught, and 39% have no preference or do not know the…
Scientists Puzzling Over Colder Deep Water Temperatures in Gulf of Maine
About a dozen years ago, the Gulf of Maine experienced an ocean heatwave unlike any other.
Today, scientists are puzzling over new data that suggest the Gulf may be experiencing another kind of climate shock.
Data collected from buoys placed in the Gulf of Maine show that over the last six months, deep water temperatures are noticeably lower than the long-term average.
“It’s not just cold in the deep waters right now, it’s really cold. And it’s fresher, it’s really fresher than…
Canada: Lennox Island First Nation Hoping for More Access to Lobster Fishery
The Lennox Island First Nation wharf is busy these days, in the band’s third year of treaty fishing for lobster, but Chief Darlene Bernard would like to see it busier.
Though there has been a commercial fishery based in the community off P.E.I’s North Shore for decades, Bernard said the newly exercised right to harvest lobster under treaties signed long ago means about 10 young families are better able to pay their bills.
With a waiting list of about the same number of people who…
OPINION: Prince William Sound Citizens’ Council Must Recommit to its Environmental Mission
As the mission of the congressionally mandated Prince William Sound Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council, or PWSRCAC, is to promote “the environmentally safe operation of the Alyeska terminal and associated tankers,” its grade so far must be an “Incomplete.”
While the council has helped reduce the risk of another Exxon Valdez disaster, it has failed to address other important environmental risks and impacts, such as the loud underwater noise generated by the tankers and escort tugs, a pervasive pollutant projected at the same low frequency used by…