The European Union's executive body is calling for sharp cuts in the amount of cod fishermen can catch next year, pointing to estimates that the fish is close to extinction in some major fishing areas around Europe.
Officials warned on Friday that only steep catch cuts will prevent the disappearance of a species prized for centuries for its flaky white flesh.
The European Commission said recent studies showed cod catches in some areas are far outstripping the rate of reproduction. It is calling for up to 25%cuts in some areas.
"We are not that far away from a situation of complete collapse," said Jose Rodriguez, a marine biologist with the environmental group Oceana. He and other environmentalists said pressure from the fishing industry had kept quotas at levels too high to sustain viable popu-lations around Europe, while lack of enforcement meant illegal fishing made the problem worse.
Scientists estimated that in the 1970s there were more than 250,000 tons of cod in fishing grounds in the North Sea,eastern English Channel and Scandinavia's Skagerrak Strait. In recent years,however, stocks have dropped to 50,000 tons.
The European Commission said on Friday it would seek in 2010 to cut the catch in some fishing grounds around Britain, France, Spain and much of Scandinavia from 5,700 tons to 4,250 tons.
In the Mediterranean, bluefin tuna has been overfished for years to satisfy increasing world demand for sushi and sashimi. The tuna population is now a fraction of what it was a few decades ago, but the EU's Mediterranean nations last month refused to impose even a temporary ban.
Oceana estimated that illegal fishing doubled the amount of tuna caught.
Meanwhile cod, which once sustained vibrant fishing communities from Portugal to Britain to Canada, is increasingly consumed by the ton as salt cod and fish-and-chips.
"People don't ask for fish and chips,they ask for cod and chips," said Mike Guo, a manager at Great Fish and Chips in Essex, England."It's a traditional dish."
The depletion has caused the decay and disappearance of hundreds of fishing villages on both sides of the Atlantic.
Overfishing off Canada's maritime provinces exhausted the world's richest cod grounds and forced the government to impose a fishing moratorium. The collapse wiped out more than 42,000 jobs, and 18 years later the fish have still not returned.
"It was devastating," said Tom Hedderson, minister of fisheries in Newfoundland."This affected whole communities ... all up and down the coast here in Newfoundland and Labrador."
He welcomed the EU call to cut catches by 25%, but suggested more drastic cuts may be needed.
Some Canadian scientists believe the collapse of cod stocks off Newfoundland and Nova Scotia changed the marine ecosystem so dramatically it may be impossible for cod to recover. Off Newfoundland alone, cod stocks once exceeded 400,000 tons but now scale only 5,500 tons, Mr Hedderson said.
There are signs of recovery of Atlantic cod off New England, however, after years of conservation efforts. And international regulators have reopened some areas off Canada for limited fishing,Canada's Fisheries and Oceans Department spokesman Scott Cantin said.
The fishing industry in Europe, however, is in decline. The number of vessels in the 15 nations that were part of the EU in 1995 has dropped from 104,000 then to 81,000 in 2006.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Sunday, October 11, 2009
GOVT TO RENEW TALKS WITH ASSEMBLY OF POOR, PM VOWS
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva will renew talks with the Assembly of the Poor in the next two weeks to solve their problems, he said yesterday.
Members of the assembly met the prime minister at a learning centre in Phibun Mangsahan district, also the assembly's headquarters in the Northeast. He handed over a 1.2 million baht cheque to farmer Grandma Hai Khanjantha for the loss of opportunity she suffered over 32 years, after her land was submerged by the Huay La Ha reservoir, built as part of a new dam.
"I will hold talks with you [the Assembly of the Poor] in the next two weeks.
PM's Office Minister Sathit Wongnongtoey accompanied the prime minister to the province.
Mr Abhisit said he had asked Mr Sathit to oversee the assembly's problems.
The government was drafting a regulation on community land title deeds,allowing communal use of state land,he said.
To solve the plight of farmers generally, the government and assembly met for talks three times in June and July.
"The government has succeeded in solving only the case of Grandma Hai.Other problems have yet to be solved,"said Sawat Uppahat, a member of the assembly.
The problems include a drastic drop in the number of fish in the Moon River caused by construction of the Pak Moon Dam in Khong Chiam district,and land disputes between villagers and state agencies. Sompong Viengchan, a villager hit by construction of the dam, said the government should order the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand to open the dam's sluice gates permanently to let fish from the Mekong River come in.
At the moment it opens four months a year.
"We want our lives back. The dam has ruined our livelihoods for over a decade," said Mrs Sompong.
Farmers wanted the government to provide 15 rai of land for each family and grant them compensation.
Thongcharoen Srihatham, another member of the assembly, warned the prime minister not to use the people's problems as a political tool to seek votes. Shortly after the prime minister left, about 1,000 red shirt protesters rallied at the centre. They swore, burned a coffin, and threw a bag of fermented fish at his poster.
Members of the assembly met the prime minister at a learning centre in Phibun Mangsahan district, also the assembly's headquarters in the Northeast. He handed over a 1.2 million baht cheque to farmer Grandma Hai Khanjantha for the loss of opportunity she suffered over 32 years, after her land was submerged by the Huay La Ha reservoir, built as part of a new dam.
"I will hold talks with you [the Assembly of the Poor] in the next two weeks.
PM's Office Minister Sathit Wongnongtoey accompanied the prime minister to the province.
Mr Abhisit said he had asked Mr Sathit to oversee the assembly's problems.
The government was drafting a regulation on community land title deeds,allowing communal use of state land,he said.
To solve the plight of farmers generally, the government and assembly met for talks three times in June and July.
"The government has succeeded in solving only the case of Grandma Hai.Other problems have yet to be solved,"said Sawat Uppahat, a member of the assembly.
The problems include a drastic drop in the number of fish in the Moon River caused by construction of the Pak Moon Dam in Khong Chiam district,and land disputes between villagers and state agencies. Sompong Viengchan, a villager hit by construction of the dam, said the government should order the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand to open the dam's sluice gates permanently to let fish from the Mekong River come in.
At the moment it opens four months a year.
"We want our lives back. The dam has ruined our livelihoods for over a decade," said Mrs Sompong.
Farmers wanted the government to provide 15 rai of land for each family and grant them compensation.
Thongcharoen Srihatham, another member of the assembly, warned the prime minister not to use the people's problems as a political tool to seek votes. Shortly after the prime minister left, about 1,000 red shirt protesters rallied at the centre. They swore, burned a coffin, and threw a bag of fermented fish at his poster.
Monday, September 21, 2009
WHERE TO FIND FABULOUS FOOD
Thailand's Eastern coast is dotted with vacation spots that everyone knows - for example, Pattaya, Rayong, Chanthaburi and Koh Chang in Trat province. When you decide to head to one of them for some time at the beach, the usual practice is to stick to the main roads and waste no time so you can get there in a hurry.
SHELL GAME: A vendor sells fresh crabs at Nong Mon market, clockwise from above, local ‘seekoon’ fish, ‘khao tom pla’, and fresh shrimp pickled in ‘nam pla’, or fish sauce.
But if it is food rather than beach time you are interested in, there is no need to go so far, and you can take your time.
A leisurely drive to Chon Buri followed by some exploring along the smaller back roads and inside Ang Sila will turn up plenty of interesting delicacies.
Today, I would like to focus just on fresh and dried foods and other edibles that are available not far from Bang Saen. Let's start with the route leading into Bang Saen.
Before you arrive at Chon Buri city, you will come to a major intersection with traffic lights, the Bang Sai three-way intersection. Take a right turn there onto the road that leads to Bang Saen, a narrow and windy one. After driving for about one kilometre, you will come to a marketplace, with ample parking space available, on the left. It is an old market, but renovation is now underway, although goods are still being sold on the sidewalks in front of and along the perimeter of it.
The first interesting sight you will encounter there is a stand selling jaeng lawn, a local speciality sold in seaside provinces (it can also be found not only in Chon Buri but also in towns on the western coast like Hua Hin and Cha-am). It is made of finely chopped fish meat, mixed with fresh curry paste and ground coconut, and seasoned to make it salty and slightly sweet with a chilli bite. Shredded kaffir lime leaf is scattered on the mixture, which is then shaped into pieces that are put on skewers for grilling. Vendors cook them on a grill in the early morning and keep selling them until they run out around noon. This snack is not all that easy to find, so when you do find it, buy.
Nearby is a stand that sells semi-dried rays. The type sold there are called pla krabane nok, ("bird ray"), and are rather small, about 30.5-cm in diameter. The reason behind its name is that it likes to leap above the surface of the seawater and glide along for short distances. The meat of the "wings" (the pectoral fins) of the fish is tender although rather dark in colour, and people who live near the sea like it very much. They cut it into pieces, then dry it in the sun for a day. It is delicious when fried and eaten with rice, and it is inexpensive. Half a kilogramme costs only 100 baht and is enough for several days' consumption.
On the soi next to the market, fresh and dried fish as well as fresh shrimp and prawns are sold. One particularly interesting item is fresh shrimp pickled in nam pla (fish sauce). The old woman who sells it is an expert at pickling shrimp this way, and makes them specially for sale. In the old days, Thais liked to eat them with steaming-hot khao tom, or rice soup.
About 300 metres away from the market, across from the nearby pier, is a small store where a grandmotherly-looking woman sells nam pla from Rayong. The brand name is Erawan, and the product comes from a small factory that still makes the condiment the old-fashioned way, a process that takes eight months. It smells delicious, and costs only 30 baht a bottle.
This is only the briefest sampling of what is available in the area of this Chon Buri market.
A market that is best to visit in the late afternoon or evening is Nong Mon market, on the main road to Pattaya. The fresh produce area is deep inside the market, far from the road. Late in the day, in front of the fresh market area, meaty crabs of the type called poo ma (horse crab) are sold. They are kept in big basins, the water in which is oxygenated by means of pumps working continuously to keep the crabs alive.
These ubiquitous crabs are available in many sizes and price ranges, with the cheapest ones going for 280 baht a kilogramme. Customers can eat them right away, because there is a steaming service that cooks the crabs on the premises and serves them with a spicy dipping sauce. They are certainly fresh, but sometimes the meat isn't too firm, because after being kept for even a day it becomes a little soft, unlike meat from crabs fresh from the sea.
Around the sides of Nong Mon market are interesting stalls selling different kinds of fish just brought in from the sea by fishermen. Buyers can never be sure that the kind of fish they want is there, because not all types are caught every day, but they will probably not be disappointed if they are looking for pla seekoon, a mackerel species similar to the popular pla thoo, but bigger. Its tasty, firm meat is perfect for frying and topping with nam pla or chilli sauce.
On their lucky days, buyers may find pla chome ngahm and/or pla nuan jan, both of which are scaleless types of fish with succulent meat that makes good kaeng som or kaeng pa, or which can be fried and served with chilli sauce poured over it. When people are fortunate enough to find these fish, they don't haggle over the price but buy a plastic box and some ice from a vendor, pack the fish inside, and rush it home.
Around the sidelines of the market are vendors selling sweets and special local dishes. The khao tom with fried shellfish is definitely worth a try.
Early in the morning, beginning at about half past seven, in a different part of Nong Mon market's wet market section is an area where dried seafood is sold along with breakfast foods that include curry and rice, kui tio pla (noodles with fish), khao tom, coffee and sweet snacks and desserts.
The prepared foods, which include curries and stir-fries, are really good, as can be seen from the large numbers of people who come to buy them and the lengths of time they are willing to wait to be served (there are tables and chairs set out for diners). Right nearby is a vendor whose pork noodles are tasty enough to be a true must, and in the middle of the market is a shop that sells khao tom pla (literally, fish in rice soup) made in the style typical of eateries in seaside areas. The rice grains are still firm rather than soft and mushy, and customers can choose between fresh fish, shrimp or squid.
Mae Nit has been selling her hor moke (fish meat steamed in a spicy, curried coconut sauce together with herbs and takes the form of a custard packed in a smallish banana-leaf cup) in this market for more than 30 years. Seaside-style hor moke tends to be sweeter and softer than the versions sold in Bangkok and other places in the Central Region.
Coffee, brewed the old-fashioned way with a long cloth bag, is available for those who want to start the day off with a glass or two. These two markets are only two among the many that inhabit Chon Buri, each with its own, individual selection of good stuff to eat that includes local dishes not found elsewhere.
If you decide to do some exploring, you won't have to drive far, and a choice culinary adventure is guaranteed.
SHELL GAME: A vendor sells fresh crabs at Nong Mon market, clockwise from above, local ‘seekoon’ fish, ‘khao tom pla’, and fresh shrimp pickled in ‘nam pla’, or fish sauce.
But if it is food rather than beach time you are interested in, there is no need to go so far, and you can take your time.
A leisurely drive to Chon Buri followed by some exploring along the smaller back roads and inside Ang Sila will turn up plenty of interesting delicacies.
Today, I would like to focus just on fresh and dried foods and other edibles that are available not far from Bang Saen. Let's start with the route leading into Bang Saen.
Before you arrive at Chon Buri city, you will come to a major intersection with traffic lights, the Bang Sai three-way intersection. Take a right turn there onto the road that leads to Bang Saen, a narrow and windy one. After driving for about one kilometre, you will come to a marketplace, with ample parking space available, on the left. It is an old market, but renovation is now underway, although goods are still being sold on the sidewalks in front of and along the perimeter of it.
The first interesting sight you will encounter there is a stand selling jaeng lawn, a local speciality sold in seaside provinces (it can also be found not only in Chon Buri but also in towns on the western coast like Hua Hin and Cha-am). It is made of finely chopped fish meat, mixed with fresh curry paste and ground coconut, and seasoned to make it salty and slightly sweet with a chilli bite. Shredded kaffir lime leaf is scattered on the mixture, which is then shaped into pieces that are put on skewers for grilling. Vendors cook them on a grill in the early morning and keep selling them until they run out around noon. This snack is not all that easy to find, so when you do find it, buy.
Nearby is a stand that sells semi-dried rays. The type sold there are called pla krabane nok, ("bird ray"), and are rather small, about 30.5-cm in diameter. The reason behind its name is that it likes to leap above the surface of the seawater and glide along for short distances. The meat of the "wings" (the pectoral fins) of the fish is tender although rather dark in colour, and people who live near the sea like it very much. They cut it into pieces, then dry it in the sun for a day. It is delicious when fried and eaten with rice, and it is inexpensive. Half a kilogramme costs only 100 baht and is enough for several days' consumption.
On the soi next to the market, fresh and dried fish as well as fresh shrimp and prawns are sold. One particularly interesting item is fresh shrimp pickled in nam pla (fish sauce). The old woman who sells it is an expert at pickling shrimp this way, and makes them specially for sale. In the old days, Thais liked to eat them with steaming-hot khao tom, or rice soup.
About 300 metres away from the market, across from the nearby pier, is a small store where a grandmotherly-looking woman sells nam pla from Rayong. The brand name is Erawan, and the product comes from a small factory that still makes the condiment the old-fashioned way, a process that takes eight months. It smells delicious, and costs only 30 baht a bottle.
This is only the briefest sampling of what is available in the area of this Chon Buri market.
A market that is best to visit in the late afternoon or evening is Nong Mon market, on the main road to Pattaya. The fresh produce area is deep inside the market, far from the road. Late in the day, in front of the fresh market area, meaty crabs of the type called poo ma (horse crab) are sold. They are kept in big basins, the water in which is oxygenated by means of pumps working continuously to keep the crabs alive.
These ubiquitous crabs are available in many sizes and price ranges, with the cheapest ones going for 280 baht a kilogramme. Customers can eat them right away, because there is a steaming service that cooks the crabs on the premises and serves them with a spicy dipping sauce. They are certainly fresh, but sometimes the meat isn't too firm, because after being kept for even a day it becomes a little soft, unlike meat from crabs fresh from the sea.
Around the sides of Nong Mon market are interesting stalls selling different kinds of fish just brought in from the sea by fishermen. Buyers can never be sure that the kind of fish they want is there, because not all types are caught every day, but they will probably not be disappointed if they are looking for pla seekoon, a mackerel species similar to the popular pla thoo, but bigger. Its tasty, firm meat is perfect for frying and topping with nam pla or chilli sauce.
On their lucky days, buyers may find pla chome ngahm and/or pla nuan jan, both of which are scaleless types of fish with succulent meat that makes good kaeng som or kaeng pa, or which can be fried and served with chilli sauce poured over it. When people are fortunate enough to find these fish, they don't haggle over the price but buy a plastic box and some ice from a vendor, pack the fish inside, and rush it home.
Around the sidelines of the market are vendors selling sweets and special local dishes. The khao tom with fried shellfish is definitely worth a try.
Early in the morning, beginning at about half past seven, in a different part of Nong Mon market's wet market section is an area where dried seafood is sold along with breakfast foods that include curry and rice, kui tio pla (noodles with fish), khao tom, coffee and sweet snacks and desserts.
The prepared foods, which include curries and stir-fries, are really good, as can be seen from the large numbers of people who come to buy them and the lengths of time they are willing to wait to be served (there are tables and chairs set out for diners). Right nearby is a vendor whose pork noodles are tasty enough to be a true must, and in the middle of the market is a shop that sells khao tom pla (literally, fish in rice soup) made in the style typical of eateries in seaside areas. The rice grains are still firm rather than soft and mushy, and customers can choose between fresh fish, shrimp or squid.
Mae Nit has been selling her hor moke (fish meat steamed in a spicy, curried coconut sauce together with herbs and takes the form of a custard packed in a smallish banana-leaf cup) in this market for more than 30 years. Seaside-style hor moke tends to be sweeter and softer than the versions sold in Bangkok and other places in the Central Region.
Coffee, brewed the old-fashioned way with a long cloth bag, is available for those who want to start the day off with a glass or two. These two markets are only two among the many that inhabit Chon Buri, each with its own, individual selection of good stuff to eat that includes local dishes not found elsewhere.
If you decide to do some exploring, you won't have to drive far, and a choice culinary adventure is guaranteed.
REELING'EM IN
It's only 5am and already about 40 tourists are ahead of us, squeezed into a roped-off aisle and surrounded by more than a hundred frozen tuna. The fish are laid out in neat rows on the floor of the chilly warehouse, giving off a faint frozen mist under the fluorescent lighting. We jostle for position and mill about excitedly, waiting for Tokyo's famous tuna auction to begin.
Men in work shirts and rubber boots bend over the solid carcasses, inspecting them by lifting a 10-cen-timetre-flap of skin that's been neatly cut open on each one, or peering at the cut-off tail end with a flashlight. The weight of each fish is written in kilograms; these, at 50kg a pop, are the smaller tuna.
A cowbell rings, and the auctioneer launches into the rhythmic chanting that marks this ritual, moving slowly through the room flanked by several men with notepads as the buyers hover near their choices and make finger signals. My daughter and I aren't sure who gets what, or at what price - the tuna are sold in groups of six or seven at a time - but we feel we are witnessing an important transaction.
Tsukiji (pronounced tsu-kee-jee), the world's largest fish market, is also the world's finest fish theratre, a diaily drama you can witness free. Even if you have only one day in Tokyo, you should spend part of the morning here. Secafood is at the heart of Japanese cuisine, and Tsukiji anchors a vast distribution system that delivers more than 2,200 tons of it every night. The immense bounty turns into daintily wrapped supermarket packages of two or three slices of perfect salmon or arrives at restaurant sushi counters by lunchtime.
The market's operations are staggering. Throughout the night, the seafood arrives from all over the world, delivered by tankers and trucks from other ports and the airport. More than 40,000 people buy and sell about 450 species and varieties of fish at the market's more than 1,500 stalls.
The lure of Tsukiji, however, is not so much its size and importance but the live theatre you can walk right through. Surrounded by warehouses, the inner market is a maze of stalls. You squeeze through the aisles, surrounded by tubs and tanks and plastic-foam trays filled with wriggling, glistening creatures from the sea, along with the frozen tuna that is being sawed into pieces for wholesale customers, and other fish being pulled from tanks onto chopping blocks. People yell to each other, water squirts up from clams and crustaceans, hoses send streams of water across the concrete floors. Buyers fill their wicker baskets.
Tsukiji is a serioous place of business, and yet the people who work there are remarkably tolerant of tourists. That tolerance reached its limit late last year, however, when a tourist reportedly licked the head of a tuna. For some weeks afterward, during the busy new Year's season, the popular tuna auction was closed to visitors. It's open again. Cordoning off the tourists in the middle of the room protects the merchandise from public displays of affection.
Be sure to obey the rules posted in English at the market entrance: Watch for trucks and trolleys, don't go to the market in groups of more than five, don't carry large bags that will get in the way, wear closed-toe shoes (and no high heels) and refrain from touching the fish. It is up to you to get out of the way of careening carts and the occasional escaped eel.
Entering the market is a little trickly, because whether you go in through the main gate, across the street from the Asahi Newspaper building, or through side entrances, you have to weave through a stream of trucks and carts. Once inside the warehouse, you can wander among the stalls, being mindful of the people who are there to conduct business. The market opens before dawn, but unless you want to see the auction, it's best to go after 8, when the pace begins to slow. By late morning, the market is packing up and shutting down.
It's within walking distance of the Ginza shopping district and also easy to reach by subway or taxi. I've gone to Tsukiji for years, both to take visitors and to buy fish. Regular shoppers aren't supposed to make purchases at the inner market, but if I wait until 9am, nobody seems to mind if I point to a large salmon fillet, have it weighed and pay the woman at the booth.
Make sure to save time for the outer market, which covers several blocks adjacent to the wholesale market. Sushi shops and tempura and noodle stalls are scattered throughout. If you're serious about trying the best sushi, look for a line and join it.
The outer market is the place to shop. You can buy pottery and kitchenware, including ladles, small grills, pots and pans, mortars, teapots and chopsticks. The hours correspond roughly to those of the inner market.
IF YOU GO...
Check out the market at www.Tsukiji-Market.or.jp/tuki-ji_e.htm.
Nearest subway stations: Tsukiji on the Hibiya line brings you to within a half-block of the outer market; you will see the Honganji Buddhist temple as you exit the subway. Tsukijishijo on the Toei Oedo line brings you to the market's main entrance.
Men in work shirts and rubber boots bend over the solid carcasses, inspecting them by lifting a 10-cen-timetre-flap of skin that's been neatly cut open on each one, or peering at the cut-off tail end with a flashlight. The weight of each fish is written in kilograms; these, at 50kg a pop, are the smaller tuna.
A cowbell rings, and the auctioneer launches into the rhythmic chanting that marks this ritual, moving slowly through the room flanked by several men with notepads as the buyers hover near their choices and make finger signals. My daughter and I aren't sure who gets what, or at what price - the tuna are sold in groups of six or seven at a time - but we feel we are witnessing an important transaction.
Tsukiji (pronounced tsu-kee-jee), the world's largest fish market, is also the world's finest fish theratre, a diaily drama you can witness free. Even if you have only one day in Tokyo, you should spend part of the morning here. Secafood is at the heart of Japanese cuisine, and Tsukiji anchors a vast distribution system that delivers more than 2,200 tons of it every night. The immense bounty turns into daintily wrapped supermarket packages of two or three slices of perfect salmon or arrives at restaurant sushi counters by lunchtime.
The market's operations are staggering. Throughout the night, the seafood arrives from all over the world, delivered by tankers and trucks from other ports and the airport. More than 40,000 people buy and sell about 450 species and varieties of fish at the market's more than 1,500 stalls.
The lure of Tsukiji, however, is not so much its size and importance but the live theatre you can walk right through. Surrounded by warehouses, the inner market is a maze of stalls. You squeeze through the aisles, surrounded by tubs and tanks and plastic-foam trays filled with wriggling, glistening creatures from the sea, along with the frozen tuna that is being sawed into pieces for wholesale customers, and other fish being pulled from tanks onto chopping blocks. People yell to each other, water squirts up from clams and crustaceans, hoses send streams of water across the concrete floors. Buyers fill their wicker baskets.
Tsukiji is a serioous place of business, and yet the people who work there are remarkably tolerant of tourists. That tolerance reached its limit late last year, however, when a tourist reportedly licked the head of a tuna. For some weeks afterward, during the busy new Year's season, the popular tuna auction was closed to visitors. It's open again. Cordoning off the tourists in the middle of the room protects the merchandise from public displays of affection.
Be sure to obey the rules posted in English at the market entrance: Watch for trucks and trolleys, don't go to the market in groups of more than five, don't carry large bags that will get in the way, wear closed-toe shoes (and no high heels) and refrain from touching the fish. It is up to you to get out of the way of careening carts and the occasional escaped eel.
Entering the market is a little trickly, because whether you go in through the main gate, across the street from the Asahi Newspaper building, or through side entrances, you have to weave through a stream of trucks and carts. Once inside the warehouse, you can wander among the stalls, being mindful of the people who are there to conduct business. The market opens before dawn, but unless you want to see the auction, it's best to go after 8, when the pace begins to slow. By late morning, the market is packing up and shutting down.
It's within walking distance of the Ginza shopping district and also easy to reach by subway or taxi. I've gone to Tsukiji for years, both to take visitors and to buy fish. Regular shoppers aren't supposed to make purchases at the inner market, but if I wait until 9am, nobody seems to mind if I point to a large salmon fillet, have it weighed and pay the woman at the booth.
Make sure to save time for the outer market, which covers several blocks adjacent to the wholesale market. Sushi shops and tempura and noodle stalls are scattered throughout. If you're serious about trying the best sushi, look for a line and join it.
The outer market is the place to shop. You can buy pottery and kitchenware, including ladles, small grills, pots and pans, mortars, teapots and chopsticks. The hours correspond roughly to those of the inner market.
IF YOU GO...
Check out the market at www.Tsukiji-Market.or.jp/tuki-ji_e.htm.
Nearest subway stations: Tsukiji on the Hibiya line brings you to within a half-block of the outer market; you will see the Honganji Buddhist temple as you exit the subway. Tsukijishijo on the Toei Oedo line brings you to the market's main entrance.
Certification for EU due in December
The Fisheries Department plans to start certifying seafood products from nonIUU (illegal, unregulated, unreported)fishing for exports to Europe by December, one month ahead of schedule.
The acceleration of the process aims to assure the European Union of the willingness of the Thai fishery industry to comply with the new rule, according to Somying Piumsombun, the directorgeneral of the department.
She said that during the discussions with the head of the EU's Directorate General For Maritime Affairs and Fisheries early this month, the EU agreed with the certification process drafted by the Fisheries Department, an EUappointed competent authority.
The process enables the EU to trace back the origins of fishery products including catch certificates of trawlers,boarding ports and processing venues,she said.
The EU will ban any entry of fishery products suspected of being caught by IUU fishing starting in 2010 to help eliminate IUU fishing activities around the world and preserve the marine ecology and environment.
According to Dr Somying, operators - from fishermen and cold-storage manufacturers to seafood processors - will be informed of the new guidelines at a meeting late this month in Samut Sakhon,the country's main fishery hub. More meetings will also be held in coastal provinces.
Songsang Patavanich, an honorary adviser to the Thai Overseas Fisheries Association, said that the EU's new rule would help clear Thailand of rampant illegal and excessive fishing allegations lodged by foreign countries.
He suggested that the Fisheries Department revamp the industry by enforcing the use of proper fishing tools to preserve fish stocks and register all trawlers.
The non-IUU certificates will help Thai fishery products to meet the requirements of non-governmental organisations such as Greenpeace in Australia and the EU, which call for the imports of non-IUU fishing products.
The acceleration of the process aims to assure the European Union of the willingness of the Thai fishery industry to comply with the new rule, according to Somying Piumsombun, the directorgeneral of the department.
She said that during the discussions with the head of the EU's Directorate General For Maritime Affairs and Fisheries early this month, the EU agreed with the certification process drafted by the Fisheries Department, an EUappointed competent authority.
The process enables the EU to trace back the origins of fishery products including catch certificates of trawlers,boarding ports and processing venues,she said.
The EU will ban any entry of fishery products suspected of being caught by IUU fishing starting in 2010 to help eliminate IUU fishing activities around the world and preserve the marine ecology and environment.
According to Dr Somying, operators - from fishermen and cold-storage manufacturers to seafood processors - will be informed of the new guidelines at a meeting late this month in Samut Sakhon,the country's main fishery hub. More meetings will also be held in coastal provinces.
Songsang Patavanich, an honorary adviser to the Thai Overseas Fisheries Association, said that the EU's new rule would help clear Thailand of rampant illegal and excessive fishing allegations lodged by foreign countries.
He suggested that the Fisheries Department revamp the industry by enforcing the use of proper fishing tools to preserve fish stocks and register all trawlers.
The non-IUU certificates will help Thai fishery products to meet the requirements of non-governmental organisations such as Greenpeace in Australia and the EU, which call for the imports of non-IUU fishing products.
Friday, September 18, 2009
INDUSTRIES READY TO STAND IN DEFENCE AGAINST US CHARGES
Three Thai industries-shrimp, garment and sugar-may face difficulties in exports to the US next year due to accusations of hiring child and migrant labour.
Kessiri Siripakorn, minister (commercial) for the Office of Commercial Affairs in Washington DC, said the US Labour Department had issued an announcement against the industries.
"Thai industries will have 90 days, until the middle of December, to clarify about the accusations. If they may be subjected to trade barriers," said Kessiri.
She called for the government and related industries to discuss the matter and present clear evidence to defend their industries.
Kessiri warned that under the Barack Obama administration, all industries must be aware of new non-tariff barriers, particularly ones focusing on labour and environment.
Thai manufacturers would face greater difficulties in exporting if they do not promptly deal with rising non-tariff barriers, she said.
Poj Aramwattananont, president of Thai Frozen Foods Association, said the US government report was untrue and the association had already presented evidence to the US Embassy in Bangkok.
The association will also present evidence regarding the matter to Washington as the association has frequently worked in cooperation with Immigration Custom Enforcement for inspecting all factories and their suppliers to ensure they have not hired any child or migrant labour in the industry.
So far, more than 1,000 factories have been investigated. The industry employs more than a million people. We are confident no child or migrant labour was hired in our industry, Poj said.
To ensure that the shrimp and other industries will not face any obstacles resulting from the report, the association will soon meet the Foreign Ministry and related Thai government agencies to clarify the issue to the US government.
Wallop Vitanakorn, secretary general of the Thai Garment Manufacturers Association, said the US report must have been the result of a misunderstanding.
He said most garment exporters to the US must normally comply with high standards required by their importers, including labour issues.
Export of garments to the US must follow a "code of conduct" which specifies that no migrant labour of child labour must be hired in the industry. Moreover, under the agreement between Thai garment manufacturers and American buyers, it states that employers must have a fair contract with laborers, including restricting maximum period of work to 60 hours a week, and set a fair payment and days off, as per the law.
Wallop said American buyers also regularly send teams to inspect their factories every six months to ensure the producers had followed the code of conduct.
He said it was impossible for garment exporters to break this tight rule. The association will soon cooperate with the Thai government and collect information to defend against this accusation.
Under the Barack Obama administration, all industries must be aware of new no tariff barriers, particularly ones focusing on labour and environment.
Kessiri Siripakorn, minister (commercial) for the Office of Commercial Affairs in Washington DC, said the US Labour Department had issued an announcement against the industries.
"Thai industries will have 90 days, until the middle of December, to clarify about the accusations. If they may be subjected to trade barriers," said Kessiri.
She called for the government and related industries to discuss the matter and present clear evidence to defend their industries.
Kessiri warned that under the Barack Obama administration, all industries must be aware of new non-tariff barriers, particularly ones focusing on labour and environment.
Thai manufacturers would face greater difficulties in exporting if they do not promptly deal with rising non-tariff barriers, she said.
Poj Aramwattananont, president of Thai Frozen Foods Association, said the US government report was untrue and the association had already presented evidence to the US Embassy in Bangkok.
The association will also present evidence regarding the matter to Washington as the association has frequently worked in cooperation with Immigration Custom Enforcement for inspecting all factories and their suppliers to ensure they have not hired any child or migrant labour in the industry.
So far, more than 1,000 factories have been investigated. The industry employs more than a million people. We are confident no child or migrant labour was hired in our industry, Poj said.
To ensure that the shrimp and other industries will not face any obstacles resulting from the report, the association will soon meet the Foreign Ministry and related Thai government agencies to clarify the issue to the US government.
Wallop Vitanakorn, secretary general of the Thai Garment Manufacturers Association, said the US report must have been the result of a misunderstanding.
He said most garment exporters to the US must normally comply with high standards required by their importers, including labour issues.
Export of garments to the US must follow a "code of conduct" which specifies that no migrant labour of child labour must be hired in the industry. Moreover, under the agreement between Thai garment manufacturers and American buyers, it states that employers must have a fair contract with laborers, including restricting maximum period of work to 60 hours a week, and set a fair payment and days off, as per the law.
Wallop said American buyers also regularly send teams to inspect their factories every six months to ensure the producers had followed the code of conduct.
He said it was impossible for garment exporters to break this tight rule. The association will soon cooperate with the Thai government and collect information to defend against this accusation.
Under the Barack Obama administration, all industries must be aware of new no tariff barriers, particularly ones focusing on labour and environment.
Friday, September 11, 2009
A RIVER BECOMING A ROAD TO RUIN
Dams and rock-blasting projects are destroying biodiversity and traditional cultures of the Mekong
The groans and grumbles emanating from Thai villages along the banks of the Mekong right now suggest that the river is in serious trouble. Villagers are complaining that Chinese dams upstream are causing unseasonably high and low levels that are disrupting river life.
One calamity that befell riverside villages in Chiang Rai was a swift surge of two metres in August last year. The residents, as well as environmental groups, blamed this on the opening of gates at several dams in China's Yunnan province, including at the huge barrier in Jinhong, the capital of Xishuangbanna administrative region. In just five minutes, the river level jumped half a metre.
Seen as a harbinger of a bleak future for both farmers and fishermen, this single event inundated farmland and villages in three of Chiang Rai's districts along the river's bank and its tributaries, creating widespread panic and mass evacuations. Such a swift surge hadn't happened in 40 years and the villagers were caught unprepared.
Meanwhile, fishermen are seeing their catches dwindle day by day. As hydropower dams upstream block the river's flow, fish find it hard to adjust to the river's changing ecology. Researchers reckon their seasonal migrations are being disturbed and disrupted by the dam projects.
Almost immediately, locals pointed the finger of blame at the dams in China. But the Thai government is not out of the loop of responsibility. With ample warning from experts and environmentalists, Bangkok can't really say it didn't see this coming. The question is what the government will now do about it.
Last May, the United Nations released a report stating that China's dam-building ambitions pose the greatest threat to the future of the already beleaguered Mekong, one of the world's major rivers and a key source of water, transport and food for the region.
Although the Mekong is widely regarded as a Southeast Asian river, its source is in the Himalayan glaciers high in Tibet. Nearly half of the 4,880-kilometre river flows through China's Yunnan province before it reaches the Southeast Asian nations of Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam, where it empties into the South China Sea.
China is constructing a series of eight dams on the upper half of the Mekong, where the river passes through the high gorges of Yunnan. These include the recently completed Xiowan Dam which, at 292 metres high, is the world's tallest. Its storage capacity is equal to all of Southeast Asia's reservoirs combined, the UN report said. The dams are needed to meet China's rapacious energy demands.
Laos, meanwhile, has started construction on 23 dams on the Mekong and its tributaries, expected to be finished by 2010, the UN said. They will act as a means to spur development and lift the country from poverty. Cambodia and Vietnam also have ambitious dam-building plans.
The report also mentioned that the effects of the proposed dam developments include "changes in river flow volume and timing, water quality deterioration and loss of biodiversity".
In addition to the dam-building spree are more river-blasting schemes. The Chinese are going to blow up islets, boulders and other natural barriers in several locations to make the river accessible to 500-tonne cargo craft. The belief is that shipping cargo to trading posts downstream at Chiang Saen and Chiang Khong in Thailand will be more cost-efficient than using air and land routes. And the Chinese are determined to achieve that goal no matter what.
The Thai locals are unsympathetic, pointing to the damage to the river's ecology.
One research project shows that the river junction in the Golden Triangle used to boast 65 types of flora that formed the food source and habitat of river creatures. Locals say that Mekong giant catfish lay their eggs around the islets and boulders that have been earmarked for blasting. Another study found that the lower stretches of the Mekong were capable of yielding fish catches of 11.3 million tonnes per year, and the middle stretches 0.9-1.2 million tonnes, worth an overall Bt105 billion to the local economy.
There have already been attempts to blow up islets in the Chiang Rai Mekong. Somkiat Khuenchiangsa, coordinator for the Natural Resources and Mekong Lanna Culture Conservation Network, says that China targeted Pha Dai in Chiang Rai, a scenic spot popular with tourists. Following villagers' protests, the river there was spared.
That stretch is a habitat for several species of fish. But Chinese engineers consider the islets obstacles to their mega projects.
Somkiat says that Thailand and China shook hands on an agreement to remove the Mekong islets in that area, but local villagers were never consulted.
For now, the Mekong's ordinary folk are finding it hard to make their voices heard, and their way of life is, it seems, steadily being destroyed. Fishermen are leaving their villages to labour in fruit orchards and farms. But the silent cry from the riverbank remains: Stop hurting the Mekong, its plants, creatures and people.
The groans and grumbles emanating from Thai villages along the banks of the Mekong right now suggest that the river is in serious trouble. Villagers are complaining that Chinese dams upstream are causing unseasonably high and low levels that are disrupting river life.
One calamity that befell riverside villages in Chiang Rai was a swift surge of two metres in August last year. The residents, as well as environmental groups, blamed this on the opening of gates at several dams in China's Yunnan province, including at the huge barrier in Jinhong, the capital of Xishuangbanna administrative region. In just five minutes, the river level jumped half a metre.
Seen as a harbinger of a bleak future for both farmers and fishermen, this single event inundated farmland and villages in three of Chiang Rai's districts along the river's bank and its tributaries, creating widespread panic and mass evacuations. Such a swift surge hadn't happened in 40 years and the villagers were caught unprepared.
Meanwhile, fishermen are seeing their catches dwindle day by day. As hydropower dams upstream block the river's flow, fish find it hard to adjust to the river's changing ecology. Researchers reckon their seasonal migrations are being disturbed and disrupted by the dam projects.
Almost immediately, locals pointed the finger of blame at the dams in China. But the Thai government is not out of the loop of responsibility. With ample warning from experts and environmentalists, Bangkok can't really say it didn't see this coming. The question is what the government will now do about it.
Last May, the United Nations released a report stating that China's dam-building ambitions pose the greatest threat to the future of the already beleaguered Mekong, one of the world's major rivers and a key source of water, transport and food for the region.
Although the Mekong is widely regarded as a Southeast Asian river, its source is in the Himalayan glaciers high in Tibet. Nearly half of the 4,880-kilometre river flows through China's Yunnan province before it reaches the Southeast Asian nations of Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam, where it empties into the South China Sea.
China is constructing a series of eight dams on the upper half of the Mekong, where the river passes through the high gorges of Yunnan. These include the recently completed Xiowan Dam which, at 292 metres high, is the world's tallest. Its storage capacity is equal to all of Southeast Asia's reservoirs combined, the UN report said. The dams are needed to meet China's rapacious energy demands.
Laos, meanwhile, has started construction on 23 dams on the Mekong and its tributaries, expected to be finished by 2010, the UN said. They will act as a means to spur development and lift the country from poverty. Cambodia and Vietnam also have ambitious dam-building plans.
The report also mentioned that the effects of the proposed dam developments include "changes in river flow volume and timing, water quality deterioration and loss of biodiversity".
In addition to the dam-building spree are more river-blasting schemes. The Chinese are going to blow up islets, boulders and other natural barriers in several locations to make the river accessible to 500-tonne cargo craft. The belief is that shipping cargo to trading posts downstream at Chiang Saen and Chiang Khong in Thailand will be more cost-efficient than using air and land routes. And the Chinese are determined to achieve that goal no matter what.
The Thai locals are unsympathetic, pointing to the damage to the river's ecology.
One research project shows that the river junction in the Golden Triangle used to boast 65 types of flora that formed the food source and habitat of river creatures. Locals say that Mekong giant catfish lay their eggs around the islets and boulders that have been earmarked for blasting. Another study found that the lower stretches of the Mekong were capable of yielding fish catches of 11.3 million tonnes per year, and the middle stretches 0.9-1.2 million tonnes, worth an overall Bt105 billion to the local economy.
There have already been attempts to blow up islets in the Chiang Rai Mekong. Somkiat Khuenchiangsa, coordinator for the Natural Resources and Mekong Lanna Culture Conservation Network, says that China targeted Pha Dai in Chiang Rai, a scenic spot popular with tourists. Following villagers' protests, the river there was spared.
That stretch is a habitat for several species of fish. But Chinese engineers consider the islets obstacles to their mega projects.
Somkiat says that Thailand and China shook hands on an agreement to remove the Mekong islets in that area, but local villagers were never consulted.
For now, the Mekong's ordinary folk are finding it hard to make their voices heard, and their way of life is, it seems, steadily being destroyed. Fishermen are leaving their villages to labour in fruit orchards and farms. But the silent cry from the riverbank remains: Stop hurting the Mekong, its plants, creatures and people.
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