Japanese city works on farming of sea urchins by cabbage waste

A northeastern Japanese city has been working on a project to farm sea urchins, an expensive delicacy in the country and elsewhere, by waste cabbages in lieu of wild ones during the winter season. The project by the city of Mutsu in Aomori Prefecture is aimed at securing a new source of income for local fishery operators when they do not catch wild sea urchins, which grow by eating seaweed and come into season between April and July. Natural sea urchins do not grow well in winter as there is not much fresh seaweed. A fishery cooperative in the city’s Ohata area, participating in the project, has refrained from picking them up during the season. "We want to create a new business model that can give hope for fishery operators," said Mutsu Mayor Soichiro Miyashita of the experiment using leaf vegetables disposed of by supermarkets. Their challenge started after officials heard about the idea of cultivating sea urchins with cabbages when they visited the Kanagawa Prefecture Fisheries Technology Center in Miura, south of Tokyo, last June. The edible interior "lobe" of the sea urchin, a small creature with a round prickly shell, is among the most popular items for […]

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