【Reading】にうけ

【English Name】consignee / primary wholesaler

Niuke (consignment receiving) refers to the work of receiving cargo such as marine products that have arrived from production areas, or to the business that carries out that role. At marine-product wholesale markets, it is the starting process of the mechanism in which fish and shellfish consigned by producers and shippers from various regions are received and then sold to intermediate wholesalers and licensed buyers through auction or negotiated transaction.

The prototype of this commercial practice dates back to the Edo period. At the time, merchants called niuke-don'ya (consignment wholesalers) took custody of goods from consignors in various regions and acted as intermediaries for storage and sale. Their source of income was the kosen (commission) earned by brokering the buying and selling, and they were distinguished from shiire-don'ya (purchasing wholesalers), who bought and sold on their own account.

Niuke-don'ya are said to have initially handled diverse items rather than being limited to specific goods. They were often classified by the consignor's region, such as Satsuma, Tosa, and Matsumae, and in Osaka and Edo numerous wholesalers were divided into groups (kumi) for business. In time, as purchasing wholesalers came to trade directly with production areas, the role of the consignment wholesalers is said to have diminished.

In present-day marine markets too, the word niuke is used on a daily basis, and consignment-receiving organizations at central wholesale markets such as Toyosu Market play an important role connecting production areas and the market.