Imported food items from Japan banned due to radiation fears

NEW DELHI: India has banned food items imported from Japan with immediate effect due to fears that food items from the quake-hit country may be contaminated by radiation leaks from its crippled nuclear plant.

The ban could be extended till credible information is available that radiation hazard has subsided to acceptable limits, health ministry said in a release on Tuesday. "Weekly reviews will be carried out by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)," it said.

Even after four weeks, local Japanese authorities are unable to safely secure the Fukushima nuclear power plant in central Japan which has been crippled by an earthquake and tsunami.

A meeting of top government officials and experts concluded that since the radiation is spreading in other parts of Japan, it may result in further radioactive contamination in the supply chain of food exports from Japan. Last month, India started screening food items originating from Japan for radiation.

Though food items imported from Japan is worth reportedly just a few million dollars, the government decided to take the action given the health risk, making it the first country to put out such a blanket ban.