Taiwan, Japan in food safety talks over import-ban violations after Fukushima nuclear disaster
Two sides set up joint task force in March after food produce smuggled from five Japanese prefectures subject to ban – Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma and Chiba
Taiwanese and Japanese officials are working to hammer out a memorandum of understanding (MOU) following a series of violations of Taiwan’s importation ban imposed on Japanese food products from certain prefectures since the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster.
Chou Shyue-yow, deputy director general of the Taiwanese Foreign Ministry’s Department of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, told a press conference on Tuesday that while Japan and Taiwan had a mechanism in place to allow information-sharing when food safety incidents occurred, both sides hoped to strengthen it.
“We are working toward the direction of signing an MOU or an agreement to strengthen bilateral cooperation on food safety,” he said.
Chou said the two sides established a joint task force in March in the wake of the discovery of food produce smuggled from five Japanese prefectures subject to the import ban – Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma and Chiba.
Investigators found that some of the products carried Chinese labels that differed from the actual Japanese place of origin before they entered Taiwan – a practice that is allowed in Japan but considered illegal in Taiwan.
Upset by the matter, a legislative committee passed a motion in late March tightening inspections on food products imported from Japan.
Under the new measure that came into force on May 15, food products imported from Japan must carry prefecture-specific labels of origin, and some food products from certain prefectures must carry documents proving they passed radiation checks.