South Korea said on Thursday that it would ask the Japanese government for radiation safety documentation on imports of food from eight areas of Japan, as concerns about contamination mount following the country's March 11 earthquake and ensuing nuclear disaster.
The documentation request will apply from May 1 to locally produced and processed food from Shizuoka, Niigata, Kanagawa, Tokyo, Yamagata, Saitama, Nagano and Miyagi prefectures, and imports will also be subject to radiation tests, a statement from the Korea Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) said.
The move follows a ban in late March on agricultural produce imports from areas affected by the nuclear crisis, including Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi and Gunma prefectures, until radiation concerns are lifted.
Earlier this month, the KFDA added Chiba to the banned list.
Japan’s nuclear safety agency said on Wednesday that the latest tests showed radiation nearly doubled last week, to 23 times above legal limits, in the sea off Minamisoma city near a nuclear facility crippled by the earthquake and a massive tsunami.
China on April 9 said it would ban the import of farm produce, including food, edible agricultural products and feedstuff, from 12 areas in Japan.
