OREANDA-NEWS. Toyota Tsusho Corporation and Kinki University have signed a memorandum of understanding on jointly promoting business in marine-product cultivation, with sights set on producing bluefin tuna hatchlings in Japan, as well as exploring various business opportunities overseas. Through such actions, the two entities aim to contribute to the expansion of sustainable marine-product cultivation.

Pledge made to strengthen hitherto collaboration and jointly engage in sustainable commercial marine-product cultivation between Toyota Tsusho and Kinki Univerisity. Establishment of "Tuna Dream Goto Hatchling Center Corporation", to which Kinki University engineers will be seconded, outlined, and hands the world's most advanced technology on to the next generation. Bluefin tuna hatchling production based on Kinki University technology to be commercialized and accelerate the advance overseas to undertaking business operations overseas.

In July 2010, Toyota Tsusho and Kinki University formed a technological tie-up on complete bluefin tuna cultivation and are now advancing efforts toward achieving the world’s first commercialization of bluefin tuna intermediate breeding.

Recent years have seen an increase in worldwide concern about preserving the natural environment, and, in Japan, regulations on bluefin tuna catches are strengthening, with the Fisheries Agency outlining a 50-percent reduction in the haul limit on natural small bluefin tuna.

With the aim of being able to provide a stable supply of cultivated bluefin tuna hatchlings (offspring of cultivated parent fish), Toyota Tsusho and Kinki University established a hatchling center in Goto City, Nagasaki Prefecture, which is currently conducting a bluefin tuna intermediate breeding business.  Along with making mass production possible, the center will contribute to increased survival rates in complete bluefin tuna cultivation by, among others, reducing the risk of fish fry dying during transport, which has been a constant issue.

With Kinki University continuing its research and technological development and Toyota Tsusho undertaking the role of achieving mass production, the two entities will endeavor to achieve commercialization of their joint bluefin-tuna, hatchling-cultivation operation.

Additionally, the memorandum of understanding between Toyota Tsusho and Kinki University outlines that—in view of efforts to preserve natural resources overseas, increased need for cultivated hatchlings and a desire to help meet demand for the complete cultivation of other fish species and for complete cultivation operations in other countries—other commercialization efforts that put to use Kinki University technology are to be considered.