The oldest written mention of whaling in Japanese records is from Kojiki, the oldest extant Japanese book, which was written in the eighth century. In this book whale meat was eaten by Emperor Jimmu. In Man'yoshu, the word "Whaling" was frequently used in depicting the ocean or beaches.
Japanese traditional whaling technique was dramatically developed in the 17th century in Taiji, Wakayama. Wada Chubei organized the group hunting system and introduced new handheld harpoon in 1606. Wada Kakuemon, later known as Taiji Kakuemon, invented the whaling net technique called Amitori hou and increased the safety and efficiency of whaling.
Whales have long been a source of food, oil, and crafts' material. A famous Proverb quotes: "There's nothing to throw away from a whale except its voice."
In 1853, a US naval officer Matthew Perry sailed into Edo bay. One of the purposes was to obtain a base for whaling in the north-west Pacific Ocean.
When Norwegian-style modern whaling, based on the use of power-driven vessels and whaling guns, was introduced in the Meiji era,
most Japanese fishermen were opposed to the indiscriminate killing of whales, which they regarded as deities of the sea and which helped to corral fish. In the early 1900s, Japanese whaling techniques developed further and Japanese whalers began turning to the West for modern whaling techniques.
Following the devastation of World War II, food was scarce, consequently whales, being a cheap source of protein, became a larger part of the Japanese post-war diet.
**wikipedia.