Domestic Products Cracked Down, Japanese Female Snow Crab Favored... Fishermen Angry at Japan

Coast Guard Announces Intensive Crackdown on Origin Concealment and More

Female snow crabs (Snow Crab) imported from Japan are being distributed in the market, causing controversy.

Snow Crab. The photo is not directly related to the content of the article.

On the 22nd, the Pohang and Uljin Coast Guard Stations announced that since October, female snow crabs imported from Japan have been brought in and sold at fish markets and online. In Korea, the capture, sale, or possession of female snow crabs, also known as 'Bbangge,' is punishable. However, Japanese female snow crabs are excluded from domestic enforcement.

In particular, the fisheries industry has expressed opposition, calling the distribution of Japanese female snow crabs a special privilege. Local snow crab fishermen plan to visit the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) on the 25th to protest and urge the protection of marine resources and restoration of distribution order. The fishermen claim, "While strict enforcement is applied domestically, the government is effectively granting special privileges to the distribution of Japanese female snow crabs." Additionally, fishermen who attended a countermeasure meeting on the domestic distribution of Japanese female snow crabs held in Yeongdeok County on the 12th stated, "Under domestic law, snow crabs under 9 cm in carapace length and female snow crabs are prohibited from capture and distribution year-round, but in Japan, snow crabs under 8 cm can be caught, leading to a large influx into the domestic market." They strongly criticized the legal loophole, saying, "This increases the possibility of mixing with illegally caught domestic snow crabs, making enforcement difficult and rendering the Fisheries Resources Management Act ineffective."

The Pohang and Uljin Coast Guard Stations formed a dedicated task force to crack down on acts such as mislabeling the origin of snow crabs as domestic after the distribution of Japanese female snow crabs.

Meanwhile, the Coast Guard announced that until the 30th, there will be a special notice period for illegal fishing activities, followed by a large-scale special crackdown from December through February 28 of next year. They plan to focus on cracking down on the capture, possession, storage, and distribution of female snow crabs and undersized juvenile snow crabs, violations of the Total Allowable Catch (TAC), mesh size violations, and false, disguised, or mixed origin labeling and sales. Under the Fisheries Resources Management Act, capturing or distributing female domestic snow crabs or snow crabs under 9 cm in carapace length can result in imprisonment for up to two years or a fine of up to 20 million KRW. If imported snow crabs are falsely sold as domestic, penalties under the Origin Labeling Act include imprisonment for up to seven years or fines up to 100 million KRW.