The other day, I received a can of mackerel.
It had a label with the mark ‘STONE ROLLS’.
…STONE ROLLS?
It’s a strange-looking mark, and it seems strange as English too.
I was intrigued, so I did a little research.
The label also says “Kinka mackerel, landed in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture”.
I realized when I looked up this information that Kinka mackerel is a local brand product of Ishinomaki, and is being promoted together with Kinka gin and Kinka bonito…
Is STONE ROLLS a pun on the direct translation of Ishinomaki?
When I searched for STONE ROLLS itself, it came up!
According to the can label and this website, it seems that STONE ROLLS is read as “stonroruzu”. However, it is registered as “stone rolls” in the standard characters on J-PlatPat.
The waters around Kinkasan Island, a small island off the coast of Ishinomaki City in Miyagi Prefecture, are rich in fish,
“The mackerel that live in the reefs around Kinkasan Island and do not migrate are shipped under the Kinkasan Mackerel brand. Originally, they were called the ‘reef mackerel’ that come up to Ishinomaki Port.“
Although ‘Kinkasan Mackerel’ is not a regional collective trademark, it seems to be expected as a regional brand. ‘Large-sized mackerel that are caught off the coast of Kinkasan Island and landed at Ishinomaki Port in season’. I’m looking forward to tasting them now. (blink)