August 2, 2019 — Japan’s Midsummer Day of the Ox, when it is traditional to eat eel to maintain stamina in the humid summer, fell on Saturday, 27 July, this year. Sales related to the day typically account for 30 to 40 percent of the country’s annual consumption of eel.
Japan’s catch of glass eels continues to decline, mostly due to the side-effects of dams and other river modifications, but closed-cycle breeding is advancing in the country. Overall, the sector is now achieving about a 10 percent survival rate.