The deadly side of Japan's most famous fish

Fugu, known as either puffer fish or blow fish in English, is one of Japan's most famous fish. And also one of the most controversial, because it requires a license to prepare and, worse still, if not prepared properly, eating it can be fatal. Moreover, fatalities are recorded, but thankfully not every year. Since 2009, the number of fatalities has decreased, from at least one a year until 2008, (with 3 a year in 2008, 2007 and 2003), to about 1 every second year.  

First and foremost, the majority of incidences (poisoning), from fugu in Japan are from home preparation, not restaurant dining. Because the licensing system for fugu is so strict for restaurants, there are less overall incidences from fugu at a restaurant. But unfortunately, there have been fatalities related to restaurant dining too.

The Japan's Health Ministry provide information on the total number of incidences and deaths annually. The most recent data is for 2024. In 2024, there were ten cases of poisoning recorded. Of those eight happened at home. Thankfully, there were no fatalities. The last recorded fatality from blowfish was in 2022 and that was not a home related fatality.