Taiwan has announced the lifting of the last remaining restrictions on imports of Japanese food products, marking a full return to pre-Fukushima trade conditions and showing support for Tokyo amid increasingly strained diplomatic relations with Beijing.
Taipei had originally imposed a total ban in 2011 on food from five Japanese prefectures near the Fukushima disaster zone. While some curbs were relaxed in 2022 and 2024, Friday’s decision ends all remaining measures.
Taiwan’s Food and Drug Administration said in a statement that “Japanese food safety management measures return to normal,” effective immediately. The agency added that more than 270,000 batches of Japanese food tested for radiation since 2011 have recorded zero failures. Scientific assessments show that the risk of additional radiation exposure from these products is “negligible.”
In the aftermath of the move, only China, Hong Kong, Macau, Russia, and South Korea still keep special import controls on Japanese foods.
The decision comes as relations worsen between Japan and China following new Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s suggestions that Tokyo might consider military action if Taiwan were attacked. Beijing views Taiwan as its territory and has repeatedly warned that force remains an option to bring the island under its control.
In a symbolic gesture of solidarity, pictures surfaced on social media Thursday of Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te holding up a plate of sushi. Lai, a staunch protector of Taiwan’s sovereignty, accused China of “severely” destabilizing the region amid the ongoing dispute. China’s foreign ministry dismissed Lai’s post as a political “stunt.”
