Food safety threatened by imported vegetables

As chemical residues have been discovered in numerous frozen spinach products from China and in imported wheat, the Japanese farmers' movement is focusing its efforts on the struggle to ensure food safety.

Japan's import of fresh and frozen vegetables began to increase in the mid 1980s. Japanese trading firms, food makers, and large distribution companies have provided developing countries with technologies and funds to grow farm products for the Japanese market.

Most of imported frozen spinach is processed by Japanese companies in China taking advantage of cheap labor costs there. Chinese farmers spray pesticides on spinach right before harvest because the Japanese companies would not buy any worm-eaten spinach.

Wheat is kept at room temperature while being transported from the United States, Canada, or Australia so that the shipping cost will be cheaper. Insecticides are sprayed on wheat immediately after harvest in order to protect the crop from worms during transport.

Ninety percent of imported food products are marketed in Japan without inspection. Although about 1.55 million kinds of food products are imported to Japan each year, the government has only 268 inspectors.

The National Federation of Farmers Movement (Nominren) disclosed illegal chemical residues in vegetables imported from China, and made the government carry out the monitoring of all frozen Chinese spinach.

Nominren also organized a campaign to provide consumers with safe vegetables. Many elementary and junior high schools have started to choose domestically produced wheat for their school lunch programs. (end)