China Stockpiles Salt Over Japan's Contaminated Water... Blocking Seafood and Boycotting Cosmetics

Chinese State-Owned Enterprise "Do Not Rush to Purchase Salt"
Japan Inevitably Hit by Ban on Seafood Imports

The issue of Japan's contaminated water discharge into the ocean is emerging as a major concern in China's consumer market. There are reports of panic buying due to fears of salt supply disruptions, and a boycott movement against popular Japanese cosmetics has also been observed. With Chinese authorities halting imports of Japanese seafood, it has become difficult for the Japanese economy to avoid damage.

According to local media such as China Securities Journal on the 24th, salt is rapidly selling out on Chinese e-commerce platforms and some supermarkets. When searching for edible salt on major consumer platforms like Hema, Meituan, and Pinduoduo, some products show messages indicating they are unavailable for purchase.

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

China Salt Industry Group, a state-owned enterprise, issued a statement saying, "Due to a recent surge in salt purchases in some regions, a short-term shortage has occurred, and we are working overtime in production and distribution to ensure supply." They urged consumers to "consume reasonably and avoid hasty, excessive purchases." They also emphasized, "Chinese salt is mainly divided into rock salt, lake salt, and sea salt. The supply structure consists of 87% rock salt, 10% sea salt, and 3% lake salt. Rock salt and lake salt are not affected by Japan's contaminated water discharge."

Concerns over contaminated water have also spread to the cosmetics market. On Chinese social networking services (SNS), lists of Japanese brands have circulated, raising suspicions about safety issues. Brands such as Kao, SK-II, and Shu Uemura were included on these lists. Kao later explained, "Only products meeting national standards are exported, and all products can be used normally." SK-II and Shu Uemura also clarified, "We have not been affected by the nuclear contaminated water discharge, and consumers can use our products with confidence."

China has also imposed a complete ban on seafood imports from Japan as a protest against the contaminated water discharge. Mainland China accounts for 20.8% of imports in the Japanese seafood market, ranking first among export destinations. Hong Kong and South Korea follow with 15.6% and 5%, respectively.

The Japanese fishing industry is expected to suffer significant damage. Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries had set a goal to expand agricultural and marine product exports to 2 trillion yen (approximately 18.181 trillion won) by 2025 and 5 trillion yen by 2030. The declaration of import bans by major export countries comes at a time when Japan was pushing to achieve the 5 trillion yen export target.

Since last month, the Chinese government has been conducting comprehensive radiation inspections on Japanese seafood, and economic damage is becoming visible on the ground. According to the General Administration of Customs of China, in July, the import volume of Japanese seafood into China was 234.51 million yuan (approximately 42.7 billion won), a 29% decrease compared to the same month last year. Refrigerated fish imports plummeted 53% to 22.63 million yuan, and frozen fish imports dropped 13% to 36.77 million yuan.

Prices have also fallen sharply. After radiation inspections began, the price of Japanese abalone dropped about 30% compared to the previous year. The Japanese Nikkei reported that since March, when the contaminated water discharge issue started being mentioned in the media, the price of sea cucumbers fell by half compared to the same period last year, reaching 2,000 to 2,500 yen per kilogram.

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