An Anthropological Study of Marine Resource Harvesting and Aquaculture: Comparative Cases from China, Taiwan, and the Philippines

2024 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K13290
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 04030:Cultural anthropology and folklore-related
• Research Institution: Nanzan University
• Principal Investigator: FUJIKAWA Miyoko 南山大学, 人文学部, 准教授 (10749550)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-04-01 – 2025-03-31
• Keywords: 海藻 / 寒天 / 資源の枯渇 / 採捕と養殖 / 日本 / 台湾 / 文化人類学

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study focused on various types of seaweed among marine organisms, with particular attention to the practices supporting the use of seaweed in Japan and Taiwan, specifically aquaculture, collection, distribution, secondary processing, and consumption. The research aimed to clarify the following points:
1) the system and history of collection, drying, and auctioning of agarophytes (seaweeds used as raw materials for agar production) in Japan;2) the crisis of agarophyte depletion in Japan and the resulting importation of seaweed from overseas;3) the exploration of agar production in Taiwan, which had been newly identified as a supply source of Gelidium;4) the crisis of Gelidiaceae depletion in Taiwan and the shift to Gracilaria vermiculophylla-based agar production;5) environmental issues in Taiwan and the ensuing risk of failure in agar manufacturing; and 6) Taiwan's current position caught between domestically sourced wild kombu from Hokkaido and imported farmed kombu from China.

Free Research Field

文化人類学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究では必然的に、①海の動植物に対するドメスティケーション（栽培化・養殖化）、②海という空間の制御（自然災害予防）、③海に生きる人々の統治（国境管理・国家防衛・海洋保護）にかかわる管理システムなどに注目することになった。これらは本来ならば水産学・経済学・政治学・防災学・土木学・軍事学・環境学といった各分野で細かく分断される形で分析がなされるはずのものであるが、本研究はそれらを「海を飼い馴らす技術」として議論の俎上に載せる点で学術的に意義をもつ。また、海藻資源の枯渇化は現在とりわけ重要な環境問題であり、先人たちがいかにこの危機を乗り越えようと試みたかに注目する本研究は社会的にも深い意義をもつ。