Delicious Rendezvous (The Best of Rest Stops / 맛남의 광장)

We crossed it so often.

I could memorize it.

Are we taking Geogadaegyo Bridge?

We cross Geogadaegyo Bridge as if it's our home.

If they had a mileage program, I'd have so many points.

What's on Geoje Island?

A shipyard.

What? - A shipyard.

A shipyard? - Yes.

A shipyard.

There are lots of fish farms.

Fish farms?

I didn't know Geoje Island had so many red sea bream farms.

I had no idea red sea bream farmers were having such a problem.

I went fishing a lot and red sea bream...

I think is a very rare and expensive fish.

But are they farmed a lot too? - Yes.

When I heard this was the ingredient,

I said, "Why on earth would we do red sea bream?"

But it's serious. Very serious.

The red sea bream are...

The reason is really baffling.

It's a reason I never thought of. I was so surprised.

Is this where the fish farm is?

Do we get out?

Let's go.

Thank you, sir.

The Namhae water is so clean.

The water here really is so clear.

The Namhae water is so clean.

Is the fish farm somewhere here?

We might have to take a boat.

Red sea bream are farmed?

Hello. - Hello.

Are you a fish farmer? - Yes, yes.

Red sea bream? - Yes.

Nice to meet you.

Do we take this boat? - Yes.

Put on a life vest.

We take a boat, right? - Yes.

Here you go.

Thank you.

You made a pretty long trip here.

Not at all.

How big is your red sea bream fish farm?

Mine? - Yes.

If we raise the red sea bream for one year,

we can supply over 100 tons.

100 tons? - A fish farm of my size.

We can produce up to 100 tons.

The young fish are about this big.

We get them when they're 3cm to 5cm long.

It takes about 3 to 4 years to grow them to...

adult size. - 3 to 4 years?

Yes.

But a huge supply from Japan came in.

We can't sell any fish at all.

Aren't Japanese fish more expensive?

Originally, they were more expensive.

But to prepare for the Tokyo Olympics...

The 2020 Olympics? - To feed the visitors and tourists,

they raised an extra lot.

They grew an extra amount to cater for tourists.

So they had a whole lot of fish, and the Olympics got canceled.

Now they can't sell the fish.

So they practically dumped the lot on us.

Due to COVID-19, the Olympic Games scheduled to...

begin in July was postponed to next year.

In the history of the modern Olympic Games,

it's the first time it got postponed due to a pandemic.

The Olympic Games were canceled,

and their red sea bream came in which reduced the price.

This is a negative effect of the cancellation I didn't think of.

Why should we suffer for it?

The expense is a problem too.

In Korea, to fatten one fish by 1kg,

it costs 10 to 11 dollars.

The expense per kilogram of it is about 10 dollars.

In Japan, it only costs 6 dollars and 40 cents.

We can't compete in terms of expenses.

Why is it cheaper in Japan?

In the Kyushu area of Japan,

the water stays warm even in the winter.

Because of the tropical current.

In Japan, the farmed fish...

eat all year round.

Do fish grow well in warm water? - Yes.

We're down south too.

Even so, in the winter,

the temperature goes down to 10°C.

It gets cold in the winter. - Yes.

The water temperature goes down to 10°C.

Then the fish don't grow.

That's another problem. - I see.

So the expenses... - It's double.

On an average year, Geoje Island...

would produce 1,200 tons of fish...

and South Gyeongsang Province would produce 4,500 to 5,000 tons.

With the increased import of...

Japanese red sea bream,

our fishing industry has stalled.

Geoje has an excess of 1,500 tons,

and South Gyeongsang Province has 6,000 tons stocked up.

We sell up to 30 percent less than before.

That's how backed-up we are.

Show us the farm. Let's talk some more there.

Okay. - This is serious.

It's serious. - The Olympic Games...

The canceled Olympic Games caused this kind of problem too.

The environment is different.

It must be over there.

Where to? - Come and see the fish.

Us too? - Yes.

They're all red sea bream.

My gosh.

There are so many. - Gosh, they're huge.

They're all red sea bream.

Do they think we're here to feed them?

Yes, that's why.

There are so many of them.

How heavy would one of these be?

A large one would weigh about a kilo.

A kilo? - Is that what you'd sell?

They usually sell at 1.3kg.

These are almost ready. - Yes.

They should be but aren't sold? - Yes.

We can't send them anywhere.

What happens to them, then?

We keep feeding them.

As they are? - Yes.

So they'll grow bigger?

And eat that much more.

Do big fish eat more? - Yes.

Do they go thin if they starve?

We have to sell fish to make money...

for feed and expenses. - Right.

And to pay labor costs.

There's no cash flow. - We can't sell any.

It's killing us.

None are going out.

Even if it's at a loss, if we get rid of some,

then the next batch will earn some.

They'll get a decent price. - Right.

That would give us some hope.

I was so desperate that I even hoped that...

a typhoon would come and kill off all the fish.

What? - Why?

That way, at least we get compensated...

and can start over, that's how bad things are.

It's so bad, you'd wish for a typhoon...

to blow them away? - That's how desperate we are.

It's desperation. - Yes.

That's how I feel.

This is serious. - Yes, it's serious.

If you can't sell these,

there's no other option.

When it comes to the expenses of fish farming,

the farmers must raise the fish for a few years before they're sold.

If the fish sell for a price that's even below the expenses,

the fishermen can't afford to buy and raise young fish.

It leads to a huge business loss.

It's very likely that they'll go bankrupt or insolvent.

How much per kilo does it go for?

The highest I got 2 or 3 years ago when prices were decent...

was 15 dollars. - Okay.

I got 12 or 13 dollars per kilo.