With the new measures on Japanese food imports to take effect in two weeks, Nobuo Kishi, a younger brother of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, arrived in Taiwan to voice Japan’s concern over the issue.
The new rules are to require labeling on Japanese foodstuffs that shows specific places of origin, as well as certification showing that the products have passed a radiation inspection.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said that communication between the two nations is unimpeded and it believes any issues would be resolved satisfactorily.
Kishi, who is also the head of a subgroup of the Japanese Diet’s House of Councillors aiming to boost economic and cultural exchanges between the two nations, led a group of Diet members who arrived in Taipei on Wednesday.
According to Japanese media, Kishi was asked by Abe to explain to the Taiwanese public that Japanese products are safe.
Lo Koon-tsan (羅坤燦), secretary-general of the Association of East Asian Relations, the group in charge of ties with Japan in the absence of diplomatic relations, said at the ministry’s weekly news conference that Kishi’s trip to Taiwan is a “routine visit,” and the government would exchange views with the delegation on the food regulations to be implemented.
However, the government so far has no plans to put off the implementation of the new measures, Lo said, adding that he was not clear whether Kishi would touch upon food regulation issues in a meeting with President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
Lo said that the food issues fall within the remit of the Ministry of Health and Welfare and that MOFA would refer Japan’s concerns about the new regulations to it.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare says that food products imported from Japan would have to show their specific places of origin rather than just the country of origin, and some products, such as dairy products and tea from certain regions, would also require a radiation inspection certificate before going through customs checks.
The new measures are to take effect on May 15.
A source familiar with bilateral exchanges said that if Taiwan is to impose rigorous safety checks on food imports from Japan, it could easily lead to a “total embargo” of Japanese products from May 15 if the two countries fail to agree on the specifics, including the format of the attached certificates, required details on labels and specifics about customs checks.
A total embargo would not happen, Lo said.
Most food manufacturers would have no trouble presenting the correct documentation, but it is also possible that some food products would be detained temporarily for custom checks, he added.
Additional reporting by Chen Yu-hsuan
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