Whale meat in the diet of Ayukawa villagers

Until imposition of a ban on small‐type coastal whaling by the International Whaling Commission in 1988, villagers of Ayukawa, northeast Honshu, Japan, included a significant amount of whale meat in their diets. Additional to its contribution to the daily diet of villagers, particularly those from whaling households, whale meat was also significant in kinship, economic, social and ritual life within the village, and villagers regarded the continuation of whaling as symbolic of the continuity of the village itself. Variation in cooking and serving styles of whale meat, preferences for particular cuts and types of meat, the context of its consumption in the past and since the moratorium, and dietary changes consequent upon the moratorium, are described from data obtained from in‐depth interviews, focus group discussions and observations conducted from 1988–1990.

Key words:

• Japan
• whale meat
• dietary change
• food preferences