Nori seaweed cultivation restarts in tsunami-hit region
News On Japan via NHKReloaded -- Oct 22

Growers of Nori seaweed have resumed cultivation off the coast of Miyagi Prefecture. They were unable to harvest the popular food for 19 months after a massive tsunami hit the area.

Fishermen went out to sea on Saturday to set their nets, which contain seaweed spores.

Yamoto area within Higashimatsushima City is known for its high quality seaweed. The Nori produced here had won first prize in the prefecture for 6 consecutive years prior to the devastating tsunami.

The loss of equipment and processing facilities delayed the resumption of seaweed production.

The Nori will be ready to harvest in about one month. It will then be dried and shipped to market.

Futoshi Aizawa says he will soon be able to check the growth of the seaweed and things will be back to normal.

He added that he wants to produce tasty Nori to please consumers.

A local fisheries cooperative official says that Nori production in the prefecture this year is expected to drop by 50 percent due to a labor shortage.

He says next year, production should recover to the same level as before the disaster.



Source: NHKReloaded



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