OECD agency eyes new global standards on radioactive content in food
12 April 2016
The Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is poised to lay down new international standards regarding concentration of radioactive substances in food. The move is expected to lead to a unified yardstick for judging safety, thereby helping relax import restrictions still imposed by some foreign countries on Japanese food in the wake of the 2011 nuclear accident at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima Daiichi plant.
In his keynote speech on the opening day, NEA Director General William Magwood pointed out that even if a country that has experienced a nuclear accident declares its food safe, other countries do not have a means of confirming the accuracy of such information. He stressed the need to unify ways of measuring radioactive concentration and standards that differ from country to country. Magwood indicated that his agency will work with its 31 member countries more strongly to reach agreement on the proposed unification.
(Fukishima Minpo News)
