ID :
170343
Wed, 03/23/2011 - 18:05
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Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/170343
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Long-standing confidence in Japanese foods at stake
TOKYO, March 23 Kyodo -(EDS: STORY COMPILED FROM CONTRIBUTIONS BY KYODO BUREAUS IN BEIJING, GENEVA, SEOUL, VLADIVOSTOK AND WASHINGTON)
Japanese foods have long been regarded as synonymous with ''safety'' and ''security,'' but its reputation is now at stake as radioactive materials far exceeding legal limits have been found in agricultural produce amid a nuclear power plant crisis triggered by the massive earthquake and tsunami on March 11.
The detection of radioactive materials prompted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday to announce a ban on imports of dairy products and vegetables from the area near the crisis-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
Countries in Asia and authorities in the Russian Far East have stepped up their screening of Japanese food imports for radioactive contamination, while seawater has also been contaminated near the nuclear plant in Fukushima Prefecture.
''Japan had been promoting its food overseas by emphasizing its safety and security,'' a Japanese man in Beijing who engages in trade with China said in a telephone interview. ''Actual safety may be secured by inspection, but it is difficult to restore a sense of security.''
The nuclear power plant crisis triggered by the massive quake and tsunami occurred just after the Japanese government moved to market Japanese agricultural products such as rice, which has a reputation for being ''safe and tasty,'' in the Chinese market, where the popularity of Japanese foods was growing mainly among wealthy people.
In China, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine ordered local authorities Monday to inspect Japanese food imports for radiation, Xinhua News Agency said, posing a big challenge to Japan's aim of expanding food exports there.
South Korea's Food and Drug Administration has also started taking similar measures and has stepped up screening of foreign farm products shipped through Japan by adding dry, frozen and processed foods produced in Japan as subject to inspection.
Despite such measures, public concern in the country remains strong as people fear contaminated foods could enter South Korea, prompting major supermarkets and department stores to temporary halt imports and sales of Japanese fishery products.
''Though we try to explain that (Japanese foods) are fine because they've passed government screening, the consumer response is unyielding,'' said an official at a major supermarket in Seoul.
The number of ''sake'' lovers has been on the rise in South Korea over the past few years.
But an operator of a Japanese restaurant expressed anxiety, saying, ''As the nuclear power plant crisis occurred in the Tohoku region, which is known for its various sake breweries, it could have a negative impact on the overall image of sake made in Japan,'' the operator said.
Meanwhile, many scientists say there is no need for people outside of Japan to be overly concerned about food contamination.
Patrick Regan, a professor in the Physics Department at the University of Surrey in Britain, pointed out that the world was already covered in radioactive cesium-137 before the power plant accident due to nuclear experiments in the 1950s to 1960s.
Stanislav Pak, a 33-year-old chef at a sushi restaurant in Vladivostok in the Russian Far East, said he is not worried.
''More than 90 percent of seafood for sushi comes from Japan, but I'm not concerned as it comes after screening,'' Pak said. ''The number of customers has not changed and I do not see people being terrified about it.''
But concern over Japan-made products continues to spread.
Taiwan has started checking the radiation levels of Japanese industrial products such as home appliances, while the U.S. authorities have announced the suspension of imports of dairy products, fresh vegetables and fruit produced in Fukushima and nearby Ibaraki, Tochigi and Gunma prefectures.
On Monday, the Japanese government ordered the prefectures to suspend shipments of some vegetables following the detection of radioactive substances in the produce at levels beyond legal limits.
The World Health Organization is now conducting its own study on the health effects of food products exposed to radiation leaked into the atmosphere from Japan's damaged nuclear power complex.
The organization said its experts in Geneva are looking at the data collected by the Manila-based WHO Western Pacific regional office to offer observations and recommendations to member countries.
Japanese foods have long been regarded as synonymous with ''safety'' and ''security,'' but its reputation is now at stake as radioactive materials far exceeding legal limits have been found in agricultural produce amid a nuclear power plant crisis triggered by the massive earthquake and tsunami on March 11.
The detection of radioactive materials prompted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday to announce a ban on imports of dairy products and vegetables from the area near the crisis-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
Countries in Asia and authorities in the Russian Far East have stepped up their screening of Japanese food imports for radioactive contamination, while seawater has also been contaminated near the nuclear plant in Fukushima Prefecture.
''Japan had been promoting its food overseas by emphasizing its safety and security,'' a Japanese man in Beijing who engages in trade with China said in a telephone interview. ''Actual safety may be secured by inspection, but it is difficult to restore a sense of security.''
The nuclear power plant crisis triggered by the massive quake and tsunami occurred just after the Japanese government moved to market Japanese agricultural products such as rice, which has a reputation for being ''safe and tasty,'' in the Chinese market, where the popularity of Japanese foods was growing mainly among wealthy people.
In China, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine ordered local authorities Monday to inspect Japanese food imports for radiation, Xinhua News Agency said, posing a big challenge to Japan's aim of expanding food exports there.
South Korea's Food and Drug Administration has also started taking similar measures and has stepped up screening of foreign farm products shipped through Japan by adding dry, frozen and processed foods produced in Japan as subject to inspection.
Despite such measures, public concern in the country remains strong as people fear contaminated foods could enter South Korea, prompting major supermarkets and department stores to temporary halt imports and sales of Japanese fishery products.
''Though we try to explain that (Japanese foods) are fine because they've passed government screening, the consumer response is unyielding,'' said an official at a major supermarket in Seoul.
The number of ''sake'' lovers has been on the rise in South Korea over the past few years.
But an operator of a Japanese restaurant expressed anxiety, saying, ''As the nuclear power plant crisis occurred in the Tohoku region, which is known for its various sake breweries, it could have a negative impact on the overall image of sake made in Japan,'' the operator said.
Meanwhile, many scientists say there is no need for people outside of Japan to be overly concerned about food contamination.
Patrick Regan, a professor in the Physics Department at the University of Surrey in Britain, pointed out that the world was already covered in radioactive cesium-137 before the power plant accident due to nuclear experiments in the 1950s to 1960s.
Stanislav Pak, a 33-year-old chef at a sushi restaurant in Vladivostok in the Russian Far East, said he is not worried.
''More than 90 percent of seafood for sushi comes from Japan, but I'm not concerned as it comes after screening,'' Pak said. ''The number of customers has not changed and I do not see people being terrified about it.''
But concern over Japan-made products continues to spread.
Taiwan has started checking the radiation levels of Japanese industrial products such as home appliances, while the U.S. authorities have announced the suspension of imports of dairy products, fresh vegetables and fruit produced in Fukushima and nearby Ibaraki, Tochigi and Gunma prefectures.
On Monday, the Japanese government ordered the prefectures to suspend shipments of some vegetables following the detection of radioactive substances in the produce at levels beyond legal limits.
The World Health Organization is now conducting its own study on the health effects of food products exposed to radiation leaked into the atmosphere from Japan's damaged nuclear power complex.
The organization said its experts in Geneva are looking at the data collected by the Manila-based WHO Western Pacific regional office to offer observations and recommendations to member countries.
