Fukusei, which introduced Smolt's heat-tolerant cherry salmon fingerlings and feed, officially announces new Amakusa-bred cherry salmon brand "Sakura"
Smolt Co., Ltd. and Fukusei Co., Ltd. have officially announced "Sakura," a new brand of cherry salmon cultivated in Amakusa City, Kumamoto Prefecture, utilizing Smolt's heat-tolerant fingerlings and feed. This initiative addresses aquaculture damage caused by rising seawater temperatures and is expected to be a high-value branded fish that enables "double-cropping management" with existing fish species.
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- 📰 Published: May 1, 2026 at 19:00
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Smolt Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Miyazaki City, Miyazaki Prefecture; Representative Director & CEO: Ken Ueno; hereinafter "Smolt") announces that Fukusei Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture; Representative Director: Yu Hirao; hereinafter "Fukusei"), which introduced Smolt's heat-tolerant cherry salmon fingerlings and specialized feed, held a presentation on April 28 in Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture, to announce the results of their aquaculture trials in Goshoura, Amakusa City, and officially unveiled the new Amakusa-bred cherry salmon brand "Sakura." This initiative involved Smolt supplying fingerlings and feed, as well as providing customer success support. Under Fukusei's unique production and sales model, which integrates aquaculture, processing, branding, sales, and PR, Amakusa-bred cherry salmon will officially launch as a high-value branded fish.
New branded fish released by Fukusei: Sakura *Provided by Fukusei
■ Background of the Initiative
Goshoura, Amakusa City, Kumamoto Prefecture, is a rich marine area known for farming tiger pufferfish and red sea bream. However, in recent years, frequent red tides due to rising seawater temperatures have caused severe damage to aquaculture. For Fukusei, it became an urgent task to diversify away from reliance on existing fish species and introduce new aquaculture species resilient to environmental changes.
In response to these challenges, Fukusei introduced Smolt's heat-tolerant cherry salmon fingerlings (approximately 2,000 fish) in December 2025, starting the first offshore trial aquaculture in Kumamoto Prefecture. By utilizing the idle time of fish pens (December to the following spring) that occurred after shipping tiger pufferfish and red sea bream, they achieved "double-cropping management" with cherry salmon aquaculture.
Furthermore, by utilizing Fukusei's independently developed freshness retention technology "Firesh®," they established a system for shipping the highest quality products regardless of the season. With today's presentation, Amakusa-bred cherry salmon has been officially branded as a new high-value salmon for the region.
Harvested Sakura *Provided by Fukusei
■ Aquaculture Overview
Start date of aquaculture: December 12, 2025
Scale of aquaculture: Approximately 2,000 fish (trial aquaculture)
Location: Goshoura sea area, Amakusa City, Kumamoto Prefecture (Fukusei aquaculture farm)
Shipping period: From May 2025
Smolt's contribution: Heat-tolerant cherry salmon fingerlings, specialized feed, cultivation technical support
New brand name: Sakura
Brand name and logo announced at the unveiling event *Provided by Fukusei
■ Features and Sales Channel Development of the New Brand "Sakura"
◎ Brand Features
・ An original brand of Amakusa-bred cherry salmon centered on rarity, regionality, and sustainability.
・ Maintains high quality regardless of the season through Fukusei's unique freshness retention technology "Firesh®."
◎ Sales Channel Development
・ Wholesale to high-end restaurants, traditional Japanese restaurants, and hotels
・ Department stores
・ Mass retailers (supermarkets, etc.)
・ E-commerce (online direct sales)
・ Gift and souvenir market
・ Future expansion into overseas markets is also envisioned
Harvested Sakura *Provided by Fukusei
Chirashi sushi with Sakura served at the unveiling event *Provided by Fukusei
■ Comment from Ken Ueno, Representative Director & CEO, Smolt Co., Ltd.
"I extend my heartfelt congratulations to Fukusei Co., Ltd. on the official announcement of their new Amakusa-bred cherry salmon brand, 'Sakura.' Our collaboration with Fukusei is truly an example of what we at Smolt aim to achieve. They have turned environmental risks such as red tides and rising seawater temperatures into an opportunity, effectively utilizing the idle time of fish pens, and built a system from scratch to deliver high-value Amakusa-bred cherry salmon to the market. I am confident that by combining Smolt's heat-tolerant fingerlings and feed with Fukusei's on-site capabilities, freshness technology, and brand power, a new model for Japan's aquaculture industry is emerging from Kyushu. Moving forward, we will continue to provide not only fingerlings and feed but also technical and marketing support to help 'Sakura' grow into a brand loved nationwide and worldwide."
■ Comment from Yu Hirao, Representative Director, Fukusei Co., Ltd.
"We have been engaged in aquaculture in the seas of Amakusa for over 60 years. However, in recent years, rising seawater temperatures and frequent red tides have threatened our operations, and the risk of over-reliance on existing fish species has become a heavy management challenge. While constantly asking ourselves, 'Is this good enough?', we encountered Smolt's heat-tolerant cherry salmon fingerlings.
'Double-cropping management,' which involves raising cherry salmon in fish pens that were empty after shipping tiger pufferfish and red sea bream, is a mechanism that simultaneously addresses environmental risks and stabilizes profits. I feel that this could become a new form of hope for aquaculture producers nationwide who face similar challenges.
The cherry salmon, raised hand-in-hand with the Smolt team, has a flavor that truly reflects the richness of the Amakusa sea. Combined with our unique freshness retention technology 'Firesh®,' I am confident that we can deliver the fresh-caught sensation to dining tables far away.
I hope this challenge will become a new model for the aquaculture industry and a step towards connecting the pride of our region to the next generation."
■ Future Outlook
Smolt will continue to provide heat-tolerant cherry salmon.
New branded fish released by Fukusei: Sakura *Provided by Fukusei
■ Background of the Initiative
Goshoura, Amakusa City, Kumamoto Prefecture, is a rich marine area known for farming tiger pufferfish and red sea bream. However, in recent years, frequent red tides due to rising seawater temperatures have caused severe damage to aquaculture. For Fukusei, it became an urgent task to diversify away from reliance on existing fish species and introduce new aquaculture species resilient to environmental changes.
In response to these challenges, Fukusei introduced Smolt's heat-tolerant cherry salmon fingerlings (approximately 2,000 fish) in December 2025, starting the first offshore trial aquaculture in Kumamoto Prefecture. By utilizing the idle time of fish pens (December to the following spring) that occurred after shipping tiger pufferfish and red sea bream, they achieved "double-cropping management" with cherry salmon aquaculture.
Furthermore, by utilizing Fukusei's independently developed freshness retention technology "Firesh®," they established a system for shipping the highest quality products regardless of the season. With today's presentation, Amakusa-bred cherry salmon has been officially branded as a new high-value salmon for the region.
Harvested Sakura *Provided by Fukusei
■ Aquaculture Overview
Start date of aquaculture: December 12, 2025
Scale of aquaculture: Approximately 2,000 fish (trial aquaculture)
Location: Goshoura sea area, Amakusa City, Kumamoto Prefecture (Fukusei aquaculture farm)
Shipping period: From May 2025
Smolt's contribution: Heat-tolerant cherry salmon fingerlings, specialized feed, cultivation technical support
New brand name: Sakura
Brand name and logo announced at the unveiling event *Provided by Fukusei
■ Features and Sales Channel Development of the New Brand "Sakura"
◎ Brand Features
・ An original brand of Amakusa-bred cherry salmon centered on rarity, regionality, and sustainability.
・ Maintains high quality regardless of the season through Fukusei's unique freshness retention technology "Firesh®."
◎ Sales Channel Development
・ Wholesale to high-end restaurants, traditional Japanese restaurants, and hotels
・ Department stores
・ Mass retailers (supermarkets, etc.)
・ E-commerce (online direct sales)
・ Gift and souvenir market
・ Future expansion into overseas markets is also envisioned
Harvested Sakura *Provided by Fukusei
Chirashi sushi with Sakura served at the unveiling event *Provided by Fukusei
■ Comment from Ken Ueno, Representative Director & CEO, Smolt Co., Ltd.
"I extend my heartfelt congratulations to Fukusei Co., Ltd. on the official announcement of their new Amakusa-bred cherry salmon brand, 'Sakura.' Our collaboration with Fukusei is truly an example of what we at Smolt aim to achieve. They have turned environmental risks such as red tides and rising seawater temperatures into an opportunity, effectively utilizing the idle time of fish pens, and built a system from scratch to deliver high-value Amakusa-bred cherry salmon to the market. I am confident that by combining Smolt's heat-tolerant fingerlings and feed with Fukusei's on-site capabilities, freshness technology, and brand power, a new model for Japan's aquaculture industry is emerging from Kyushu. Moving forward, we will continue to provide not only fingerlings and feed but also technical and marketing support to help 'Sakura' grow into a brand loved nationwide and worldwide."
■ Comment from Yu Hirao, Representative Director, Fukusei Co., Ltd.
"We have been engaged in aquaculture in the seas of Amakusa for over 60 years. However, in recent years, rising seawater temperatures and frequent red tides have threatened our operations, and the risk of over-reliance on existing fish species has become a heavy management challenge. While constantly asking ourselves, 'Is this good enough?', we encountered Smolt's heat-tolerant cherry salmon fingerlings.
'Double-cropping management,' which involves raising cherry salmon in fish pens that were empty after shipping tiger pufferfish and red sea bream, is a mechanism that simultaneously addresses environmental risks and stabilizes profits. I feel that this could become a new form of hope for aquaculture producers nationwide who face similar challenges.
The cherry salmon, raised hand-in-hand with the Smolt team, has a flavor that truly reflects the richness of the Amakusa sea. Combined with our unique freshness retention technology 'Firesh®,' I am confident that we can deliver the fresh-caught sensation to dining tables far away.
I hope this challenge will become a new model for the aquaculture industry and a step towards connecting the pride of our region to the next generation."
■ Future Outlook
Smolt will continue to provide heat-tolerant cherry salmon.