FTIB Newsletter
New Fish Processing Factory Opens
A $3 million fishing and processing operation has opened in Suva by several Japanese investors who have been encouraged by the prospects in Fiji. Tosa Busan (Fiji) Ltd was established in January this year after being given approval by the Fiji Islands Trade and Investment Bureau to establish a skipjack tuna fishing and processing operation.
The operation consists of one fishing vessel with an all-local crew, and a fish processing factory which has two major sections: a Blast Freezer (kept at a temperature of -60(C) with a capacity to hold 10 tonnes at a time); and a super freezing container (a 40 footer container kept at a temperature of -60(C). The company presently has two freezing containers for exporting Sashimi-grade products to Japan.
Tosa Busan (Fiji) Ltd is the only company outside of Japan which processes skipjack into Tataki or grilled sashimi. Encouraged by the sharp increase in demand for their products in Japan, the company has invested a further $510,000.00 towards two pole & line fishing vessels and processing machinery to pump up their production. The vessels and machinery are expected to arrive in Fiji soon.
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The company supplies its parent company, Tosa Bussan Inc in Tokyo, a large wholesaler of fish and fish product which supplies several big supermarkets in Tokyo.
Since commencing processing at the end of April, the company has been producing around 40 tonnes of tataki per month. With the additional vessels and machinery, the company's productivity will increase to 90 tonnes. The total estimated catch for the three vessels will be around 2500 metric tonnes per year. But this is still a small catch in comparison to the admissible catch of 16,000 metric tonnes per year allocated by the government for pole & line fishing vessels based in Fiji.
It is smaller still when compared to the demand for skipjack tataki in Japan, which is about 15,000 metric tonnes per year. But why a set-up in Fiji, with its prevailing political climate and four weeks away from Japan by boat?
Company director Toru Nakano replies: "Production cost of Tataki is so high in Japan due to high price of raw fish, labour cost and so on." During the time of political instability last year, Nakano said, they were able to study a lot of things and what best mode of transport they were able to use. That followed their elimination of airline freight but resorted to transhipment.
"Also, Fiji is located near the fishing ground of skipjack, it has many educated workers, we don't have to get boat engineers and ship masters from Japan, they are all available locally," Nakano explains. "Fiji also has the necessary infrastructure."
The company employs close to 80 locals, two of whom are also company directors.
It anticipates employing more locals when the new vessels and machinery arrive later next month.
