Japanese fishery imports found radioactive matter

SEOUL - An increasing number of Japanese fishery products exported to the Republic of Korea (ROK) are found to be contaminated with radioactive materials, local media reported Thursday.

The country's quarantine agency has detected cesium and other radioactive materials in 32 Japanese fishery products in the first two months of the year, a surge from 21 cases last year since the nuclear meltdown at nuclear power plants in northeastern Japan, Yonhap News Agency said.

Radiation levels in such products are too low to cause public health concerns, and there is no plan to ban fishery imports from Japan, the Animal, Plant and Fisheries Quarantine and Inspection Agency said.

Following the nuclear crisis in its neighboring country, South Korean authorities have run radiation checks on seawater and marine products on a regular basis.

Recent government data showed ROK imported 40,466 tons of fishery products from Japan last year, down 47 percent from a year earlier, reflecting public anxiety over radioactive contamination.