Friday, October 7, 2011

#Radioactive Mushroom: 1,033 Bq/Kg of Radioactive Cesium from Dried Shiitake in Shizuoka Prefecture

There's always "the first"..

From Jiji Tsushin (10/7/2011):

静岡県は7日、同県伊豆市内で生産・加工された乾燥シイタケについて販売業者が行った自主検査で、食品衛生法の暫定規制値(1キロ当たり500ベクレル)を超える1033ベクレルの放射性セシウムが検出されたと発表した。これを受け県は8日、生産者が保管していた同じ加工品について、放射性物質検査を実施する。

Shizuoka Prefecture announced on October 7 that 1,033 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium exceeding the provisional safety limit of 500 becquerels/kg was found in the dried shiitake mushrooms produced and processed in Izu City in Shizuoka. It was found by a voluntary testing by a retailer. The prefectural government plans to conduct its own testing of the remaining products kept at the producer on October 8.

 県によると、乾燥シイタケは3~4月に伊豆市で収穫され、4月中旬までに同市内で加工された。生産者は県内外5カ所の業者に販売。一部は既に消費されたとみられるが、販売先の業者はいずれも自主的に撤去したという。

According to the prefectural government, the shiitake mushrooms in question were harvested in Izu City in March and April, and processed in the city by the middle of April. The producer sold to 5 retailers in and out of Shizuoka. Some are considered to have been already consumed, but the retailers have voluntarily removed the mushrooms from their stores.

If the mushrooms were harvested in that time period, radioactive cesium must be from the fallout on the surface of the mushrooms. The Ministry of Education is yet to conduct the aerial survey of Shizuoka Prefecture, and the Hayakawa radiation contour map only shows the east side of the Izu Peninsula with some radiation. Izu City is located in the center of the peninsula.

(The map showing the location of Izu City is from this blog. Thank you.)

8 comments:

netudiant said...

It seems that Honshu will no longer be able to grow low radioactivity foods.
The cesium smog is pretty pervasive, and is getting recycled as the government promotes incineration of radioactive debris as a solution.
Meanwhile, there is an easy solution for the shiitake growers, simply measure the activity of the freshly picked mushrooms. Mushrooms have way more than 50% water, so if the dried product is only 100% over the limit, the freshly picked mushrooms will be well within the safe range.
Poor Japan!

Viola said...

Mushrooms, milk and deer were the most contaminated products in Bavaria after Chernobyl; mushrooms and deer still are only to be eaten with caution after 25 years...
Another region of Japan, but this news in Mainichi Daily Oct. 6th caused a big alarm clock ringing, I wonder if the beef was a special offer...
"Nagano Prefectural Government cafe to use deer meat in curry, spaghetti Bolognese"
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20111006p2a00m0na010000c.html

Anonymous said...

laprimavera, have you seen this piece? http://www.minpo.jp/view.php?pageId=4147&blockId=9895001&newsMode=article

arevamirpal::laprimavera said...

Aaaaggghhh I'm going crazy! Every day I'm hoping it will all end somehow, and every day I find more crazier news than the day before.... Thank you for the links. I didn't know about Nagano deer meat, but on reading the news I found even more demented stories involving deer meat. Glass badges news I read it, and was too appalled to write it up. I guess I should.

Anonymous said...

@arevamirpal

It looks like Japanese have lost their minds.

Anonymous said...

Shizuoka, the prefecture southwest of Tokyo, is the same place that had the highly contaminated green tea that they weren't expecting to find. Are shiitake mushrooms grown outside? I thought they were grown indoors, but I don't really know. The ones in the store usually look clean like they were grown inside.

arevamirpal::laprimavera said...

@anon at 9:39PM, they are grown both outside and inside.

kintaman said...

I have been telling my friends and colleagues abroad not to eat any food products from Japan but they all laugh and tell me that there is nothing to worry about and that I am over reacting.

This is insanity, full blown nightmare insanity.

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