Breeding koi in Japan

Although koi are bred very successfully in Israel, the Far East, South Africa,throughout Europe and in the United States, Japan is still considered the home of Nishikigoi. There are several regions in Japan that are synonymous with high-grade koi. These are Hiroshima, Shizuoka, Saitama, Toyama and Kyushu. However the prefecture (the district administered or governed by a prefect) of Niigata is by far the leader. The breeders here being the most revered in the world of Nishikigoi. These days even breeders who are following on in a long established family business, have probably attended university to study fish farming and may have travelled the world in order to learn from the best breeders the techniques used, and to study the complexities of fish genetics. However not all breeders in Japan maintain their own breeding stock, some may just buy in quality fry, or even eggs, to grow on in their own stock mud ponds. This should not be seen as cheating, but merely a way for those who lack space to be able to grow on prize koi from top breeders. There is a certain skill in deciding which to discard and which to grow on and this selection process will take place several times as the fish grow. Although mud ponds are vast and are able to hold significant numbers of koi, they are only available to the breeder over the summer months - the growing period for koi. After the ponds are emptied during the October harvest they are not used until the following May. The harvested stock are over-wintered in purpose built greenhouse-style facilities, usually near to the breeders homes. These contain many huge ponds which are used for bringing on their prized Tategoi (fish specially chosen by the breeder for their prospective potential), and brood stock.