FUKUSHIMA: Fukushima Governor Masao Uchibori said Monday that it is “really regrettable” that South Korea has started a food service for its own Olympic athletes to avoid food products from the northeastern Japan prefecture, which was hit by the country’s worst nuclear accident in March 2011.

“Producers (in Fukushima) are doubling efforts, including taking safety measures and conducting thorough tests,” Uchibori told a press conference. He called for eliminating misunderstanding and prejudice about the accident’s effects on Fukushima food products.

South Korea is concerned that meals containing ingredients from Fukushima may be provided in the Tokyo Olympic Village.

There remain a total of 14 countries and regions including South Korea that still maintain restrictions on food imports from Japan after imposing them in the wake of the nuclear accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc.’s tsunami-stricken Fukushima No. 1 power plant.

“I want the (Japanese) government to inform (the world) of facts (about the safety of Fukushima food) and respond firmly (to irrational fears about Fukushima food),” the governor said.

JIJI Press