A requirement for an examination certificate regarding Iodine-131 radiation testing of food from East Japan—put into effect in 2011 after the earthquake, tsunami, and Fukushima nuclear disaster—was dropped, effective 8 December of last year, the Hong Kong Center for Food Safety posted on its website on 18 May.
Imports of chilled or frozen aquatic products from five Japanese prefectures—Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Chiba, and Gunma—previously had to be accompanied by a certificate issued by the competent authority of Japan attesting that the radiation levels of Iodine-131, Cesium-134, and Cesium-137 do not exceed the guideline levels of the Codex Alimentarius Commission. The certificate is still needed for the latter two isotopes.
The European Union and Singapore, among other countries, have already dropped the requirement for Iodine 131 on the certificate. Iodine-131 has a half-life of just 8 days, while Cesium-134 and Cesium-137 have half-lives of two years and 30 years, respectively.
In addition to the document, the Center for Food Safety checks the radiation levels of every consignment of food products imported from anywhere in Japan.
