MOSCOW, September 26. /TASS/. Russia may impose restrictions on supplies of fish products from Japan, the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance (Rosselkhoznadzor) announced on Tuesday.
"Taking into account the possible risks of products being contaminated by radiation, Rosselkhoznadzor is considering the possibility of joining the Chinese in restricting the supply of fish products from Japan. A final decision will be made after negotiations with the Japanese side," the statement says.
At the 11th meeting of the Russian-Chinese permanent working group for cooperation on veterinary, phytosanitary control and food safety, the Russian agricultural watchdog and Chinese representatives discussed their position regarding fish products exported from Japan potentially being contaminated with radiation.
The Russian regulator requested the competent authorities in Japan to provide, by October 16, information about the methods they use for determining the radiation content of exported fish products, including the residual content of the radioactive isotope of hydrogen - tritium.
"An analysis by Rosselkhoznadzor revealed that there are no approved methods for detecting tritium in aquatic products in Russia," the report notes.
The regulator plans to team up with several competent scientific institutions to develop an appropriate methodology, the agency adds.
According to the watchdog, currently the volume of exports of fish products from Japan to Russia is small. In 2022, a total of 190 tons were delivered. This year, as of September 22, Russia has imported only 118 tons.
"However, Russian vessels catch a significant amount of fish in the area bordering Japanese waters," the watchdog notes.
About discharge of technical water from Fukushima-1 NPP
At the end of August, the Russian Federal Fisheries Agency instructed the All-Russian Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography to assess the state of water quality in the distribution zone of technical water discharged from the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant. The expedition was to ensure the safety of the waters of the South Kuril region, as well as make sure there were no risks to fishing for Far Eastern fishermen.
Meanwhile, the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China completely stopped importing seafood from Japan on August 24.
On August 24, the nuclear power plant operator, Tokyo Electric Power, began discharging the first batch of water into the ocean. As the operator stated, this water has been purified, diluted with sea water and generally cleared of radioactive substances, but in small volumes, significantly below established standards, still contains tritium (radioactive isotope of hydrogen).