YAMATO-KORIYAMA, Nara >> Scenes of goldfish breeding ponds have come to be one of the symbols of Nara prefecture. The city of Yamato-Koriyama in the prefecture is said to have a 300-year history of goldfish farming, and it is now considered one of the three major goldfish producers in Japan, along with Edogawa ward, Tokyo and Yatomi, Aichi prefecture.

On a downtown shopping street in Yamato- Koriyama, goldfish are everywhere, including in a spherical water tank set in front of a shop that sells items for Buddhist altars, as well as a tank attached to an art piece at a train station ticket gate.

Since 1995, the city has been holding the Goldfish Scooping World Championship, in which contestants catch goldfish with scoopers made of fragile paper, an activity that’s common at Japan’s summer festivals.

In the early 20th century, Yamato-Koriyama accounted for more than 60% of the nation’s goldfish production. Although goldfish ponds were converted during World War II into rice paddies or ponds to grow carp for food, demand later rose for goldfish scooping games, partly in thanks to the country’s strong economic growth after the war.

In recent years, however, goldfish farms have struggled in the face of the country’s declining birthrate and a lack of successors to take over the farms.

In a town where goldfish farming techniques have been passed down from generation to generation, it has become an ongoing battle to preserve the traditional industry.

At a crossroads

Yamato-Kingyoen Co. has been in the goldfish aquaculture business for nearly 100 years. It raises 500,000 to 600,000 goldfish annually in about 60 small and large ponds over a total area of about 5 acres. Glancing down into the bodies of water, schools of goldfish elegantly wave their tail fins as they swim about.

In goldfish farming, the most important task is selecting the parent fish. According to Teruya Shimada, president of Yamato- Kingyoen, only about one in several thousand goldfish is suitable for producing generations of ornamental fish. These select fish possess desirable characteristics such as an attractive eye size and tail shape, and are raised separately.

Water quality and feed must also be carefully managed. Water fleas are used as feed for young fish, but an overabundance can result in poor oxygen supply. A favorable environment requires regulating water fleas using fertilizers and phytoplankton. And because feed affects the color of the fish, different food is used for different varieties and during the fishes’ different growth stages.

“Much of the necessary knowledge was accumulated by our predecessors through studies and research,” said Shimada. “We’ve got to pass it on to the next generation.”

Now, goldfish farming is at a crossroads in Yamato-Koriyama. According to the city, 70 million goldfish were sold in 2008, but by 2020, sales had dwindled to 50 million. With farmers aging, the number of goldfish farms have dropped to 36 in 2018 from 80 in 1998.

The pandemic made matters worse. Festivals and events were canceled across the country, curtailing demand for goldfish. The goldfish scooping games accounted for 80% of Yamato-Kingyoen’s sales, but they dwindled to almost nothing in 2020 and 2021.

The area’s farmers are now taking a different approach. Nara prefecture’s goldfish fisheries cooperative is currently raising Kuro Ryukin and Edo Nishiki goldfish, top-notch varieties. Now that more people are staying home, the demand for ornamental goldfish is growing. The co-op has also launched a subsidy for the costs of raising other top varieties that can draw up to $143 per fish.

“Going forward, it will be necessary to produce goldfish that show the individuality of the producer,” Shimada said.

Samurai side hustle

There are a number of theories regarding when goldfish were introduced to Japan; the most popular is that they were brought to Sakai, Osaka, in 1502. It’s believed they were introduced to the Yamato-Koriyama area in the 18th century.

According to city history, goldfish farming was a side hustle for samurai. Though their farming techniques were long a mystery, in 1993, a large hole — 24 feet by 11.5 feet in size and 3 feet deep — was discovered at a site believed to have been a samurai residence. Farming tools such as feed buckets were also found, leading to the conclusion that the hole was once a goldfish pond.

After feudal domains were abolished in 1871, samurai across the country lost their jobs, and those in Yamato-Koriyama turned their side gig into a full-time profession.

In 1887, Yanagisawa Yasunobu, the last lord of the Koriyama domain, began studying aquaculture methods and devoted himself to helping those who were once in his domain.

Goldfish farming flourished in Yamato- Koriyama, said one city official, because “the area had many reservoirs, providing a good growing environment for water fleas and other organisms that serve as food for goldfish.”