Tasmanian sea urchin
Our next flagship product
Tasmania is the island at the southern tip of Australia. Sea urchins grown in its cold, clear water are gathered one by one by divers, and their rich flavor and color are prized by buyers for high-end Japanese restaurants and sushi.
Tasmania is an island state south of mainland Australia, across Bass Strait. The main island lies at roughly 40 to 43 degrees south, in the band of strong westerly winds known as the Roaring Forties.
The Tasman Sea lies to the east, and the warm East Australian Current flows down from the north. Tasmania is about 8,771 km from Tokyo in a straight line, and its seasons are the reverse of Japan's.
Tasmania's east coast is a string of white beaches and emerald coves. The orange on the granite at the Bay of Fires is lichen. Much of the coast is little touched by people, and the water is remarkably clear.
Tasmania's urchin fishery mainly harvests these two species.
Centrostephanus rodgersii
A big, dark-purple urchin with long, slender spines. Originally from mainland Australia's east coast, it has spread south on the current and is now common on Tasmania's east coast. Its roe has a reliable golden color that is valued in Japan.
SeasonDecember to June
Heliocidaris erythrogramma
A native urchin with short, stout spines. Harvested since the 1960s, it has long been the mainstay of Tasmania's urchin fishery. The season runs from late September to December, when roe quality peaks.
SeasonLate September to December
We also sell these under the Japanese trade names murasaki-uni and bafun-uni.
Seasons can change under fishery management rules. Together, the two species cover most of the year.
Tasmania's urchin fishery is a dive fishery. There is no dredging: divers pick each urchin by hand, which protects both the roe and the seabed. The number of commercial dive licences is capped at 53.
A method that leaves the seabed intact
Divers choose well-filled urchins
Licence numbers are capped to protect stocks
Tasmania's east coast is warming faster than the global average, and at least 95% of its dense giant kelp forests are estimated to have been lost.
On top of that, the longspined urchin carried south by the current has multiplied and grazed reefs down to bare rock. These urchin barrens grew from about 3% of eastern reefs in 2001 to about 15% some fifteen years later. Harvesting longspined urchins for their roe is now one of the main ways to bring numbers down and protect what kelp remains.
Sources: University of Tasmania IMAS; GrowAg (2021). Figures are as of each study.
Carefully hand-gathered by divers to protect quality, our Tasmanian uni has rich flavor and beautiful color. It will become one of our main products, and we are expanding supply. Ask us about specs, volumes and timing.
Photos: Unsplash (Unsplash License).
