Kochi prefecture in Japan is located directly on the Pacific Ocean and the people particularly love skipjack tuna (Katsuo in Japanese). The skipjack always plays a main role for local food culture. Unfortunately, we recognize that there is a clear tendency for the fish catches in the vicinity of Japanese coast to decrease in recent. The people in Kochi prefecture have strongly developed a critical feeling for the tendency. According to the statistical information, the fish catches in the Pacific Ocean remarkably raises especially since 2000. The fisheries of Kochi have been exclusively based on the pole-and-line fishing. On the other hand, the purse seine fishing is globally getting more predominant. In order to sustain the skipjack tuna and the coastal fisheries, the people of Kochi have established KSSA on Feb. 2017. KSSA works to develop, support and promote skipjack tuna culture and the fisheries not only in Kochi but also in the world. KSSA’s goal is to contribute to sustain the skipjack tuna resources. We would like to connect with the many fellows who emphasize the importance of skipjack tuna sustainability all over the world.

The activities of KSSA involve the following working groups (WG). (1) Promotion WG: the WG is continuously discussing and planning the way how to release our opinion and the contents what to deliver, including holding the symposium. (2) Consumption and Fisheries WG: the WG is designing the consumer’s life style regarding skipjack food culture and the sustainable fisheries method mainly by pole-and-line fishing. (3) Exploration and Sustainability WG: the WG tries to promote the scientific exploration on the migration of skipjack tuna in the Pacific Ocean and to propose our vision on the sustainability into the future. (4) Food Culture WG: the WG is collecting various kinds of information on skipjack tuna as essential materials of Japanese soup stock and at the same time establishing the novel and characteristic Meister system concerning on skipjack tuna in Kochi.