Kinki University's 'Kuetama' Fish to Be Offered as a Return Gift for Shirahama Town's Hometown Tax Donations

Kinki University Fisheries Research Institute (Shirahama, Wakayama Prefecture) and A Marine Kindai Co., Ltd., a venture company launched by Kinki University (Shirahama, Wakayama Prefecture), will begin offering 'Kuetama'—a hybrid fish (cross between Kuromutsu and Tamakai) successfully developed for the first time in Japan by the Fisheries Research Institute—as a frozen hotpot set return gift for donations to Shirahama Town's hometown tax program, starting Thursday, July 23, 2026 (Reiwa 8). The product will be available in limited quantities for households to enjoy easily at home.

※ Examples such as Burihira (Yellowtail × Hirame), Kindai (Ishidai × Ishigakidai), and Kuetama (Kuromutsu × Tamakai) are fish species created by Kinki University’s advanced technology, crossing two fish species to combine their best traits. The term 'Thoroughbred Fish' was coined by Kinki University to succinctly express this concept and is academically referred to as hybrid fish.

Kindai Kuetama Hotpot Set 1kg (serves 4–5)

【Key Points of This Initiative】

- Launching Kuetama, the first hybrid fish successfully developed in Japan by Kinki University, as a hometown tax return gift for Shirahama Town, Wakayama Prefecture

- Offering 1kg for a donation of ¥40,000 and 500g for ¥24,000 as frozen hotpot sets convenient for home use

- Promoting the value of farmed fish to society through research-based return gifts, aiming to realize sustainable fisheries

【Details of the Initiative】

Kuetama, served at the aquaculture-specialty restaurant 'Kinki University Fisheries Research Institute Osaka-Kansai Expo Water Plaza Store' during the Osaka-Kansai Expo held in Reiwa 7 (2025), is a hybrid fish first successfully developed by Kinki University in Heisei 23 (2011). While Kuromutsu is known as a 'legendary premium fish,' it grows slowly and requires a long time before harvest. By crossbreeding it with Tamakai, a fast-growing southern grouper species, Kinki University succeeded in creating a fish that retains the delicate, refined flavor of Kuromutsu while growing rapidly. Due to its high farming efficiency, Kuetama is also gaining attention as a promising species for land-based aquaculture.

Until now, due to limited production scale, Kuetama was sold exclusively through A Marine Kindai’s e-commerce site. However, with the supply system now established to offer it as a hometown tax return gift for Shirahama Town—the birthplace of Kinki University Fisheries Research Institute—it will be offered in limited quantities as a frozen hotpot set for convenient home enjoyment.

By offering the research成果 of Kinki University Fisheries Research Institute as a hometown tax return gift, the initiative aims to promote the value of farmed fish—safe, delicious, and sustainably produced under strict quality control with reduced environmental impact—while working toward the realization of sustainable fisheries.

【Overview of the Offering】

Application Start: 9:00 AM, Thursday, July 23, 2026 (Reiwa 8) – until supplies last

Shipping Period: November 2026 (Reiwa 8) to February 2027 (Reiwa 9) – donors can select preferred shipping time at time of order

Contents: - Donation of ¥40,000: Kindai Kuetama Hotpot Set (1kg, frozen, serves 4–5) - Donation of ¥24,000: Kindai Kuetama Hotpot Set (500g, frozen, serves 2–3)

※ Both include premium dashi ponzu sauce

Application Method: Applications via various hometown tax portal sites

【Kinki University and Shirahama Town Collaboration】

In 1948 (Showa 23), Kinki University’s first president, Koichi Sekokou, established the Shirahama Marine Research Station of Osaka Institute of Technology (the predecessor of Kinki University, now the Shirahama Experimental Station of Kinki University Fisheries Research Institute) with the cooperation of the then-mayor of Shirahama Town, aiming to pioneer marine fish aquaculture under the philosophy of 'cultivating the sea.' This marked the beginning of the relationship between Kinki University and Shirahama Town. Since then, numerous groundbreaking achievements have taken place in Shirahama, including the development of 'Kobushi-style net cage aquaculture,' now a global standard in aquaculture techniques, the world’s first artificial hatching of species like flounder, and the industrialization of high-growth red seabream seedlings through selective breeding.

In 2007 (Heisei 19), Shirahama Town and the tourism industry collaborated to utilize research成果, shipping Kuromutsu specifically for Shirahama and jointly branding it through industry-academia collaboration, promoting it especially as a winter culinary highlight.

In 2017 (Heisei 29), a comprehensive partnership agreement was signed. Beyond tourism promotion through Kuromutsu supply, the agreement included advancing aquaculture research on Kuetama, then still in the research phase, pushing toward practical application.

【Inquiries】

Public Corporation Kinki University, Strategic Planning Division, Public Relations Office Contact: Sakano, Kawahara TEL: 06-4307-3007 FAX: 06-6727-5288 Email: [email protected]

Shirahama Town Office, General Affairs Department, Planning and Policy Section Contact: Sakamoto TEL: 0739-43-6598 FAX: 0739-43-5353 Email: [email protected]

【Image Availability】

Images related to this announcement are available at the following website.

Please feel free to use them.

https://goo.gl/66nurK