January 6, 2021 — Japan’s self-proclaimed “tuna king,” Kiyoshi Kimura, is neither the owner of the largest sushi chain in the country, nor its leading purchaser of tuna. He is, however, the one credited with always buying the “biggest and best tuna” available from the first wholesale auction each year at Tokyo’s Toyosu Market. Until this year, that is.
On 5 January, 2021, Kimura – who serves as president of Sushi Zanmai Co., Ltd. – abdicated his title amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, allowing the top tuna to go to Yukitaka Yamaguchi, president of intermediate wholesaler Yamayuki, which supplies many of the top artisanal sushi bars in Tokyo.