Bluefin Tuna Fetches Unprecedented Sum of 3.2 million dollars at Tokyo New Year Sale
A bulky bluefin tuna made headlines at the Tokyo's Toyosu fish market this Monday, securing a historic bid of 510.3 million yen ($3.2 million; £2.4m) during the venue's opening auction of the calendar year.
The successful offer for the 243kg fish was placed by the company of a nationwide sushi chain, which operates restaurants throughout Japan and internationally.
"The first tuna signals fortune," stated the company president, a notable participant at the annual first sale.
Known as the King of Tuna, this entrepreneur is noted for making record bids for bluefin tuna at these auspicious January auctions.
Bidding Shock and Record-Setting Past
After the auction, the successful bidder admitted to journalists that he was "taken aback at the winning bid," noting, "I expected we would be able to purchase it a little at a lower price, but the price skyrocketed before you knew it."
This latest acquisition tops his previous record purchases:
- He paid 56.5 million yen away in 2012.
- He spent 155 million yen a year later.
- In 2019, he purchased a tuna for 333.6 million yen (2.1 million dollars).
Even after previously commenting that he thought he "bid too high," he has now gone on to surpass his own record yet again.
An Annual Spectacle of Exorbitant Bids
The first auction at the Tokyo fish market is notoriously associated with exorbitant prices. The previous year, the first tuna was acquired for 207 million yen by another culinary group, which stated the fish would be available at its restaurants nationwide.
The frenetic energy at the fish market during these pre-sunrise auctions has evolved into a must-see event in Tokyo. Monday's auction, which began around 05:00 local time, was equally bustling.
Swift Service
The multi-million-dollar tuna was promptly sliced up for customers at the entrepreneur's sushi chains soon after the auction ended.
"I feel like I've started the year in a auspicious way after eating something so lucky as the year gets underway," remarked one satisfied patron.
