On the 1st, 16 of the 30 fishing cooperatives in Shiga Prefecture merged to form the Shiga Biwako Fisheries Cooperative Association, and a ceremony was held in Otsu City. They are calling on the remaining fishermen’s cooperatives to participate, and in the future aim to become the “Kenichi Fisheries Cooperative” that covers the entire prefecture.

Many fishing cooperatives around Lake Biwa are facing difficult business conditions due to aging members and declining catches. For this reason, the Prefectural Fisheries Cooperative Federation (Prefectural Fisheries Federation) has been strengthening its cooperation with its affiliated fisheries cooperatives since 2020. The Fisheries Agency, the prefecture, and the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives also cooperated in the discussions toward the merger.

The 16 companies that decided to merge were Katata, Otsu, Konan, Seta Town, Yamada, Shina, Tamatsu Ozu, Nakasu, Omihachiman, Hikone City Matsubara, Hirono, Nagahama, Minamihama, Kaizu, Hamabun, and Miwa. Fisheries cooperative. As a result of the merger, the number of members will be 364, and the annual catch will be approximately 170 million yen.

At the establishment ceremony held on the 1st at the Prefectural Fisheries Hall in Onohama, Otsu City, Takanori Sano, representative director of the association, said, “Continued efforts for the merger are necessary.The new fisheries cooperative will build up a track record and aim to become the prefecture’s leading fisheries cooperative.” We encourage everyone to participate.”

Following the establishment of the Shiga Biwako Fisheries Association, preparations will be made for the representative election as soon as possible and a representative meeting will be held. The company will take advantage of the economies of scale resulting from the merger to improve collection and shipping efficiency and expand sales channels.