America's Double Standards: 'Japanese Contaminated Water is OK, Japanese Food is NO'

US FDA Updates Ban on Japanese Imports... Dairy, Seafood, Shellfish, Meat, and Poultry
US Secretary of State Blinken and State Department Criticized by China for Supporting Japan's Contaminated Water Discharge

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Jo Young-shin] Chinese media reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has banned the import of agricultural and marine products from around Fukushima, Japan, since March 2011.

According to Chinese media including Xinhua News Agency on the 15th, the FDA recently renewed the 'Import Ban Order 99-33,' which prohibits the import of Japanese products due to radioactive contamination.

The newly banned items include dairy products such as butter and infant formula, as well as rice, whole wheat, seafood, meat and poultry, shellfish, tangerines, and kiwis, Chinese media reported.

(Photo by Xinhua News Agency)

Chinese media reported that dairy products, agricultural products, and infant formula from certain areas such as Fukushima Prefecture and Ibaraki Prefecture contained radioactive iodine levels exceeding five times the permissible limit, leading to import bans in the U.S. They also noted that the FDA recently designated new items for import prohibition.

The U.S. State Department issued a statement saying, upon Japan's decision to discharge contaminated water, "Japan's decision was transparent" and "it appears to have adopted an approach in accordance with nuclear safety standards." U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken also posted a tweet on the same day expressing "gratitude for Japan's transparent efforts," defending the Japanese government.

Following the U.S. State Department's position, criticism of the U.S. is growing in China. The criticism points out the inconsistency of supporting Japan's discharge of contaminated water while banning imports of Japanese products due to concerns over radioactive contamination.

Chinese nuclear industry officials have also expressed sensitive reactions, unanimously condemning Japan's discharge of contaminated water. They evaluated, "While wastewater generation and treatment at nuclear power plants are normal, the discharge of contaminated water, which reached record levels after the nuclear accident, is entirely different from wastewater discharge from normally operating nuclear plants," adding, "Fukushima nuclear power plant's contaminated water still contains radioactive materials that cannot be removed."

(Photo by Xinhua News Agency)

Gui Liming, a nuclear safety expert at Tsinghua University, said, "At the time of the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011, seawater used to cool the reactor was directly exposed to nuclear fuel, resulting in a severe density and amount of radioactive materials," adding, "Only by thoroughly repeating the dilution process will the radioactive materials be almost eliminated."

Chinese nuclear industry officials proposed that China should cooperate with neighboring countries to increase environmental monitoring facilities across coastal waters and initiate long-term monitoring projects to investigate the impact of Japan's nuclear power plant contaminated water discharge on the marine environment.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.