Osaka Central Wholesale Market/Osaka Central Fish Market

Osaka City Central Wholesale Market is a municipal central wholesale market in Osaka that handles fresh foods such as vegetables, fruits, seafood, and meat, playing a central role in the distribution of perishable food supplies. Under the Wholesale Market Act, there are 64 central wholesale markets nationwide established by local governments with authorization from the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. In Osaka City, there are three markets: the Main Market (handling vegetables, fruits, seafood, etc.), the East Market (handling vegetables, fruits, seafood, etc.), and the Nanko Market (handling meat). The Main Market is known as the second-largest market complex in Japan by transaction volume, after Tokyo’s Toyosu Market. Following the 1918 Rice Riots, when stable food supply became difficult, the Central Wholesale Market Act was enacted in 1923 to ensure fair transactions and appropriate price formation, and permission to establish the market in Osaka was granted in March 1925. The Main Market opened in November 1931 at its current location in Noda, Fukushima Ward. Since then it has continued to develop as a core system supporting the distribution of fresh foods, and the reconstruction and redevelopment project that began in fiscal year 1989 was completed in 2002.