- After Japan released treated radioactive wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear power plant, China banned all imports of Japanese seafood.
- Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced a $141 million emergency fund to help Japanese exporters affected by China’s seafood embargo.
- Residents of Hong Kong, South Korea and other neighboring countries have also pledged to stop eating Japanese seafood.
Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Monday pledged $141 million to aid exporters hit by China’s embargo on Japanese seafood over the release of treated radioactive wastewater from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant. announced an emergency fund.
The discharge of wastewater into the ocean began on August 24 and is expected to continue for decades. Japanese fisheries groups and groups in neighboring countries strongly oppose the release. In addition to China’s ban on all Japanese seafood imports, Hong Kong has also banned Japanese seafood imports from Fukushima Prefecture and nine other prefectures.
China’s trade restrictions have affected Japanese seafood exporters even before the launch, with shipments stuck in Chinese customs for weeks. Prices of seafood such as scallops and sea cucumbers, which are popular in China, have plummeted. The ban has affected the prices and sales of seafood in places far from Fukushima, such as Hokkaido, which has many scallop farmers.
Japan pledges aid to fisheries during decades of Fukushima nuclear waste release
Kishida said the emergency fund was in addition to the $547 million the government had previously allocated to help fisheries and processed seafood and combat damage to the reputation of Japanese products.
Kishida said, “I will do whatever it takes to protect Japan’s fishing industry,” and called for cooperation, such as by increasing the amount of seafood served at dinner tables.
The funds will be used to develop new markets for Japanese seafood to replace China and to finance government purchases of seafood for temporary freezing and storage. The government is also aiming to expand domestic seafood consumption.
Officials said they plan to explore new export destinations in Taiwan, the United States, Europe, the Middle East and some Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia and Singapore.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida eats seafood from Fukushima Prefecture in Tokyo on August 30, 2023. (via Cabinet Public Relations Office AP)
Kishida met with workers at a fish market last Friday to assess the impact of China’s embargo and pledged to protect Japan’s seafood industry.
Kishida is heading to Indonesia on Tuesday to attend the annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, where he could face criticism from Chinese Premier Li Qian, who is with him, over the discharge of wastewater.
A large amount of radioactive wastewater has accumulated at the Fukushima plant since the 2011 devastating earthquake and tsunami destroyed cooling systems and melted three reactors.
Japan to release Fukushima nuclear waste into ocean on Thursday
Japanese officials and the plant operator say all seawater and fish samples taken since the treated wastewater began being released were well below safety standards set for radioactivity.
Mainland China is the largest overseas market for Japanese seafood, accounting for 22.5% of the total, followed by Hong Kong with 20%.
Nomura Research Institute executive economist Takahide Kiuchi said seafood exports accounted for only a fraction of Japan’s total exports, and unless tensions escalated and China extended restrictions to other areas of trade, the ban would continue. He said the overall impact would be limited.
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The Chinese government is angry over U.S. trade restrictions that restrict China’s access to semiconductor processor chips and other U.S. technology on national security grounds. Japan is also curbing exports of semiconductor manufacturing technology. Such restrictions and possible future measures imposed by the Japanese government could further extend China’s trade ban on Japan, Kiuchi said.
“Considering these risks, the Japanese government should consider how to deal with deteriorating relations with China, not only on the release of treated water, but also on how to cooperate with the United States in areas such as investment in China and trade restrictions. We need to think carefully,” Kiuchi said in a recent analysis.
