A shipment of fava beans, also known as broad beans, from Japan was barred from entering Taiwan yesterday after tests determined it was contaminated with radiation.
However, food regulators and Atomic Energy Council officials said the level of radiation was low and did not exceed government safety standards.
“We have found iodine-131 [I-131] and cesium-137 on the shell of a shipment of 14kg of raw broad beans,” said Wang Chung-der (王重德), chief of the council’s Department of Radiation Protection. “Although they meet safety standards, we have asked customs to seal it up for safekeeping so they will not enter the local market.”
Tsai Shu-chen (蔡淑貞), chief of the Food and Drug Administration’s food safety division, said the importer had been notified when the council informed them of the results yesterday morning. Because the contamination was below safety levels, the importer could continue to sell the products at local markets, she said.
Tsai said all fresh food imported from Japan must pass safety examinations before it is allowed to enter the local market.
Wang said I-131 has a half-life of about eight days and that almost all of it is gone in 80 days. However, fresh food cannot keep for that long, he said.
Wang said documents showed the beans were imported from Kagoshima, which is far from the damaged Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant.
More time was needed to determine how and where the product was contaminated, he said.
As for other products from Japan, Wang said Japan’s chief government spokesman had said on Saturday that elevated radiation levels had been found in milk and spinach near the Fukushima plant.
Although the levels are higher than safety standards, Wang said the beans did not pose an immediate health risk. However, the Japanese government has requested Fukushima Prefecture to suspend the sale of any agricultural and dairy products it produces, he said.
To ensure the safety of all products imported from Japan, Wang said the Bureau of Standards, Metrology and Inspection had agreed to add radiation tests to its routine examination, said Liu Wen-shi (劉文熙), deputy director of the council’s Department of Radiation Protection.
“They can begin the process as soon as their equipment is ready,” he said. “This is not the first time they have been tasked with such a mission and I believe it will be easy for them.”
On the nuclear fallout, Wang said the council was monitoring the situation every five minutes. So far, all data has been within normal range.
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