Japanese nori wholesalers take pride in history, skills

A nori wholesaler examines nori on March 20. Making accurate judgments of the seaweed is a skill that nori wholesalers are proud of. (Credit: The Yomiuri Shimbun)

In mid-March, strong voices of men bidding on dried nori seaweed echoed in the Omori Nori Kaikan hall, the building of the nori seaweed wholesalers' cooperative association in Omori in Tokyo's Ota Ward.

"This is high quality nori. It's moderately crisp," one man said. Another said, "This is too soft."

The nori harvest season runs from November through April. During that season, members of the nori wholesalers' cooperative association gather at the building on Wednesdays to participate in nori auctions.

Nori wholesalers gather for a dried nori auction on Feb. 27. Late November through mid-April is the busiest time for them. (Credit: The Yomiuri Shimbun)

The Omori district was a major nori production area from the Edo period (1603-1867). However, in 1962, two years ahead of the previous Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, a Tokyo Bay land reclamation for the Games was announced, leading about 2,000 nori farmers to quit the business. The move put nori wholesalers in a difficult situation, as they lost many nori suppliers.

Yet, the wholesalers managed to continue holding auctions by bringing in nori from across the nation, relying on their skill in determining different qualities of nori.

"Experienced wholesalers do not make mistakes in judging good nori," Naohisa Furuichi, a 62-year-old chief director of the cooperative association, proudly said.

Although the cooperative association deals in nori mainly produced in Kanagawa Prefecture, there are about 70 nori wholesale stores in Omori even today.

Efforts to pass down the history of nori production in Omori are also made at the area's Omori Nori Museum.

On March 16, about 80 people, including parents and children, gathered at the museum to participate in a workshop to make dried nori from raw nori using traditional production utensils.

Toshitake Hirabayashi, a 78-year-old former nori farmer who served as an instructor at the workshop, said, "I'd like to convey to people the history of nori production in Omori while having them spend an enjoyable time."

"I was interested in the fact that this place that I know so well used to be a big nori production area," said a 9-year-old third-grade elementary school boy who participated in the workshop with his mother. "I'd like to eat the nori I made by wrapping it around a salt-seasoned rice ball."

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