This may "be compared with estimates of about 15 pounds for the United 
States, 25 pounds for Germany and 38 pounds for Great Britain. Whereas 
in many Western countries the per capita consumption of meat reaches more 
than a hundred pounds per year, in Japan it has been estimated at about 
four pounds. Thus fish takes the place of meat in the diet. 
Wartime consumption has decreased greatly. On the basis of an esti¬ 
mated catch of 1,750,000 tons for last year and the assumption that almost 
all the fish caught was used as food, consumption for 1944-45 is estimated 
at about 40 pounds. This figure may be too high as part of this catch 
probably went into government stockpiles. Further reductions in production 
during more recent months may mean that average consumption has dropped 
still lower. 
Japanese ideas concerning fish are radically different from those 
of Westerners who regard meat as of higher quality; Japanese in general 
prefer fish to meat regardless of price. Whereas Westerners know only a 
relatively small number of fish, the Japanese used more than 400 kinds of 
fish and shellfish for food purposes. Table 3 (page28) names the most 
important of these; locally many other kinds were in common use. 
production of fertilizer and oil and since there was also much waste in 
processing (or even in fish eaten fresh) the "per capita consumption" 
varied greatly in accordance with the concept used. 
The following figures are presented here as estimates of the prewar 
(1936 - 1938) consumption: 
Per capita (pounds) 
Total consumption (all uses) of fish, shell¬ 
fish and crustaceans in terms of weight as 92 - 105 
captured 
Consumption of fish, shellfish and crustaceans 
for direct food purposes in terns of weight 60-70 
as caught 
Consumption of fish, shellfish and crustaceans 
in terms of edible portions 37 - 42 
- 155 - 
16 03 1 P 180 bu 
