The first blowfish auction held in western Japan's Shimonoseki

This year marked the first blowfish auction has taken place in the city of Shimonoseki in western Japan's Yamaguchi Prefecture. Sunday's auction started with the ringing of a bell at the Haedomari market, which handles the largest volume of the fish in the country.

Due to the effects of the cold weather at the end of last year, the flesh firmness of blowfish caused the highest bid to reach 23,000 yen, or around 147 dollars, per kilogram.  The blowfish purchased at the auction will be mainly shipped to Tokyo and Osaka.