Unagi Day

Today is the Day of Unagi, Eel Day. Many Japanese people customarily eat eel on this day. 

This custom was started in Edo-period. A well-known inventor Hiraga Gennai wanted to help poor sales eel restaurant, so he made an advertising poster for the shop. The ad said "Doyou no hi, Unagi no hi" or "the midsummer is Eel Day ". After the campaign, the sales of the restaurant had been increasing. Many other eel restaurants took the idea for their shops and succeeded. Since then, that campaign became a Japanese custom. 

Unfortunately, the number of eel has been decreasing, so the price of eel has been soaring. Since Japanese people eat 70% of eel in the world, we have to think about eel consuming. 

にほんブログ村

Eel, Unagi

It's been hot recently. On a days like this hot, Japanese people including me often want to eat unagi or eel. On 24th July and 5th August this year are called "Ushi no hi" or the day eating eel. 

I really want to have una-don now. But the cost is quite expensive recently because the resource of eels have been reducing these days. To protect the resource, should we stop to eat eel?

にほんブログ村