EU to lift import restrictions on Fukushima rice, other Japanese foods
Jiji -- Nov 12
The European Union has decided to lift its restrictions on imports of some foods from 10 prefectures in Japan, such as rice grown in Fukushima, home to the country's worst nuclear accident.

The partial lifting, decided by the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, will take effect on Dec. 1. The other nine prefectures are Akita, Miyagi, Gunma, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Chiba, Iwate, Nagano and Yamagata.

After the March 2011 accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc.'s <9501> disaster-stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant in the northeastern prefecture of Fukushima, the EU required the submission of certification documents on radiation checks for some foods from a total of 13 prefectures, also including Yamanashi, Niigata and Shizuoka.

Following the removal of the restrictions on Fukushima rice, it will become unnecessary in principle to prove that rice grown in other prefectures is not from Fukushima.

For Akita, the restrictions will be eliminated for wild vegetables. The prefecture will thus be fully exempted from the EU restrictions.

News source: Jiji