Single Snow Crab Gets Auctioned for Record 10 Million Yen in Japan

Stacey Ritzen
·2 min read
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Snow crab season in Japan kicked off with a record auction this week, after a single 1.2-kilogram snow crab sold for an incredible 10 million yen (about $66,000 USD) at the Hamasaka fishing port in the coastal town of Shinonsen.

The crab was a highly sought-after "matsuba-gani," which refers to male snow crabs that are found in the Sanin region along the south-western coast of Japan's main island Honshu. The name translates to "pine needle crab," as a reference to the crab’s long, slender limbs. To be considered matsuba-gani, snow crab must meet certain criteria, such as weighing at least 1.2-kilogram.

The lucky buyer was restaurant owner Ryosuke Uemura, 47, proprietor of the Ryouriya Uemura restaurant in the Chuo Ward of Kobe, who placed the winning bid on Nov 6., the first day of snow crab season.

"I wanted to get one on day one, no matter what. The crabs at the Hamasaka fishing port are high quality, and I want that to become better known. I would like to eat the snow crab with my restaurant’s patrons," Uemura told the Japanese news outlet The Mainichi. Uemura likewise placed a bid of 2.5 million yen (roughly $16,600 USD) to win a kiraboshi crab the following day on Nov. 7.

According to the the Japan Fisheries Cooperatives' Hamasaka branch, it marked the first time individual crabs have fetched over 1 million yen in two consecutive days.

The sale blew away the previous record set for the sale of an individual crab, which was sold for about 3.15 million yen in the town of Kami’s Shibayama harbor in 2022.

However, the uptick in prices is no coincidence. Billions of snow crabs have been disappearing from Pacific waters in recent years due to marine heat waves. As a result, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game canceled snow crab season for the second year in a row, as stock was estimated to be below regulatory threshold.