On March 25, 2011, Taiwan passed a total ban on all imports of food products from Japan's Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma and Chiba prefectures in response to the Fukushima nuclear disaster caused March 11, 2011 by the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. On February 21, 2022, Taiwan modified its import controls on Japanese food to reflect current realities, based upon the three principles of returning to scientific evidence, adopting inspection measures stricter than international standards and ensuring food safety. Instead of a blanket ban on certain regions, the new policy places restrictions on certain higher-risk products. The establishment of a comprehensive food safety management system guarantees no danger of radioactivity from imported food. This policy will rigorously safeguard the health of the Taiwanese people, while also bringing Taiwan's standards in line with global food safety practices.
Three measures for safe import of Japanese foods
■ Import ban on certain items: Imports remain banned for products with distribution restrictions within Japan, as well as for wild animal meat, mushrooms and "koshiabura" vegetables from Fukushima and the four nearby prefectures.
■ Double certification of at-risk items: Certificates for both place of origin and radiation inspection must be provided for: food products from Fukushima and the four nearby prefectures that are not banned by the previous measure; mushrooms (Miyagi, Iwate, Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectures); aquatic products (Miyagi and Iwate prefectures); tea (Shizuoka prefecture); and dairy products and baby food products (Miyagi, Saitama and Tokyo prefectures).
■ Border inspections for radiation: Radiation inspections are conducted on each batch of food products from Fukushima and the four nearby prefectures. Inspections are also carried out with frequency adjusted according to risk level for nine categories of Japanese products—fresh fruits and vegetables, frozen fruits and vegetables, fresh aquatic products, frozen aquatic products, dairy products, baby food products, mineral water or drinking water, seaweed products and tea—in addition to random sampling inspections of other food products.