Tokyo's Tsukiji Fish Market Set for 'Food Theme Park'

There’s nothing quite like cooking fresh fish with oriental vegetables, and one place you are certain to find amazing fish is the famous Tsukiji Fish Market.

Originally, after a lot of consideration, Tokyo's giant Tsukiji fish market was set to be fully destroyed. However, some alternative negotiations and planning took place, and it will now be closed for as many as five years while it is treated to a full modernisation and turned into a "food theme park", the Japanese capital's governor recently said.

During the rebuilding of Tsukiji, the current market will move to a state-of-the-art 600-billion yen (£4.2 billion) facility in Toyosu located on the eastern outskirts of Tokyo.

Once the works are completed, Tokyo will have two wholesale fish markets, governor Yuriko Koike said.

Ms Koike had halted the planned move to Toyosu last August, just months before the new market's scheduled opening, after food safety concerns were raised, but changed her mind.

The preliminary plan was to sell the bayside Tsukiji property once the move had gone ahead, with ideas for a shopping centre or casino in the pipeline.

But Ms Koike stated that she isn’t keen on the idea of such a one-time cash gain for the capital.

“Tsukiji is a valuable brand and landmark”, she said at a news conference.

"Our country has always valued tradition," Koike added.

Ms Koike wasn’t going to lay out an exact timeline when asked, instead stressing she was just announcing a basic plan that still requires approval by the city legislature.

Tsukiji is renowned all over the globe for its tuna auctions and quaint sushi joints and is still busy with tourists.

Ms Koike said she wants to turn Tsukiji into a "food theme park", rebuilding its antiquated buildings and adding the latest earthquake-resistant technology.

She believes Toyosu's high-tech distribution systems and its proximity to airports will help make it a bustling market that can co-exist with Tsukiji.

Image: Arian Zwegers under Creative Commons