Japan is known as the biggest consumer of tuna. Be it raw for sushi or sashimi or fried, broiled or canned, tuna is an important element of the food culture.
But concerns are growing because tuna is disappearing, and this is putting Japan in a difficult diplomatic position.
How much tuna does Japan consume annually, and how does the rest of the world feel? Following are basic questions and answers:
How many types of tuna are there?
Read the rest of the story: Does Japan’s affair with tuna mean loving it to extinction?.

Rice farming has sustained the people of northern Japan’s Inakadate village for two thousand years. Today, the ancient rice fields are the source of food and art.
Up close, the stalks of rice look like any other found in a rice paddy. CBS News correspondent Celia Hatton reports there are several varieties planted here, each with different colored leaves. Combine them together and an enormous 15,000 square foot image is revealed.
Every year, a local art teacher produces a computerized sketch. It’s transferred onto a grid, and mapped with thousands of dots. …

Who remembers the ditty,
Ice Cream
You Scream
We all scream
for….
Ice Cream
I wonder what an equivalent rhyme is in Japan for the universal yell for keeping cool with Ice Cream.
I find wrappers dotting the streets where I live, in bright colors and cool shades, great designs screaming out to be noticed, and great flavors that I look for when I need to scream for some of Japan’s great treats.
All wrappers 100% found in Japan.
Have you seen any new flavors where you are?
Keep cool, Happy Summer.
Found in Japan
happy finding to all and to …

You can’t beat Japan for variety and quality of native cuisine. Here are some of my favorite types of restaurants, followed by a few recommended Tokyo spots.
Noodle shops
A little more than an hour off my plane from the U.S., I was starving and had some time to kill, as my ride was going to be late to Shinagawa station. It is a very busy, somewhat bewildering train station. I’m a noodle fanatic, so I naturally homed in on a noodle shop.
For a minute or so, I studied the action: People …

Japan’s All Nippon Airways announced it Friday it will become the first airline in the world to offer draft beer in-flight beginning Tuesday.
The airline said the draft beer will cost about $11.30 per glass and 20 cups will be available on each domestic flight, except Tokyo to Okinawa flights, which will have 40 glasses, the Japan Probe reported Friday.
Officials said the beer will be served using keg technology designed to compensate for air pressure problems that previously made draft beer problematic on flights.
The kegs are going to be installed and …

Say the word geisha and images of beautiful kimono-clad women serving green tea, reciting poetry and playing classical instruments may spring to mind.
In Japan, outsiders typically pay hundreds of pounds to spend several hours with geisha in tea-houses, with activities including artful conversation, and dancing.
But a downturn in the global economy appears to be forcing the world of geisha to seek more enterprising – and cheaper – ways of earning a living by setting up geisha beer gardens.
Read the rest of the story: Struggling geisha swap tea and poetry for …

A monster tuna caught off Japan turned heads at a Tokyo fish market Friday, where the 445 kilogram (981 pound) bluefin — the biggest caught here since 1986 — sold for 3.2 million yen (36,700 dollars).
"Many of the people who work at the market have never seen a tuna that big," said an official of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, which runs the Tsukiji fish market, the world’s biggest seafood market.
The fish, which was auctioned at 7,200 yen per kilogram, had already been gutted and cleaned of its gills, meaning it …

Scientists say soy contains a natural compound which can help reduce production of oestrogen, the hormone which contributes to menopausal problems.
Studies in Japan, where soy is consumed with meals regularly, found that Asian women experienced milder menopausal symptoms than Americans and Europeans where use of soy is less frequent.
Soy has already been found to have anti-cancer properties and can lower cholesterol.
Now researchers say the new wonder food could be an alternative to conventional hormone replacement therapy as a way of treating uncomfortable menopausal problems, such as hot flushes and even …

Sake is gradually increasing its presence at banquets where Japanese government leaders play host to foreign dignitaries.
The Foreign Ministry has mainly used wine at such banquets because it is easy to handle and goes well with any dish.
However, sake has begun to be included among other beverages at dinners and receptions amid growing calls from within the ministry to actively push sake in the field of diplomacy.
In inviting foreign VIPs, the ministry checks on their likes and dislikes and whether they are allergic to any foods in deciding on menus …

Salmon has overtaken horse mackerel as the most popular fish for Japanese people to eat, due largely to improvements in freezing technology that have raised the quality of imports as well as housewives’ preference for a fish that is easy to prepare. The government released a study on fish consumption on May 21 in which salmon emerged as the most popular to eat at home, followed by squid and tuna, all of which are straightforward to turn into a meal. In 1965, salmon was not in the top five as …