Bluefin Tuna Sells for Record Price of $3.2m at Tokyo New Year Sale
A massive Pacific bluefin tuna made headlines at the Toyosu fish market this Monday, achieving a historic bid of 510.3 million yen ($3.2 million; ÂŁ2.4m) during the venue's opening auction of the calendar year.
The winning offer for the 243-kilogram fish was placed by the operator of a nationwide sushi restaurant group, which runs restaurants domestically and overseas.
"The year's tuna signals fortune," stated the entrepreneur, a regular bidder at the yearly January sale.
Dubbed the Tuna Tycoon, this industry figure is renowned for making record bids for bluefin tuna at these high-profile new year auctions.
Auction Shock and Historic Past
Following the auction, the successful bidder admitted to journalists that he was "taken aback at the winning bid," stating, "I had thought we would be able to buy it a little at a lower price, but the price soared rapidly."
This most recent acquisition tops his own notable purchases:
- He bid 56.5 million yen back in 2012.
- He paid 155 million yen a year later.
- In 2019, he acquired a tuna for 333.6 million yen ($2.1m).
Even after once saying that he thought he "did too much," he has now proceeded to break his own record once again.
An Annual Spectacle of High Prices
The opening auction at the Tokyo fish market is traditionally characterized by sky-high prices. In the prior year, the initial tuna was purchased for 207 million yen by another culinary group, which announced the fish would be featured at its locations nationwide.
The high-energy activity at the fish market during these pre-sunrise auctions has become a must-see spectacle in Tokyo. Monday's auction, which started around 05:00 local time, was equally bustling.
From Auction to Plate
The extremely valuable tuna was quickly prepared for customers at the entrepreneur's sushi chains shortly after the auction was finished.
"I feel like I've commenced the year in a auspicious way after consuming something so auspicious as the year begins," said one happy patron.
